Reunion
by chameleononplaid
Summary: This is an AU story about Henry finding Emma & bringing her back. She had already been invited back there for her high school reunion, something she dreads. Killian Jones is a hacker who wants his life back. Both have to return to a town that has done its part in ruining their lives. At times though, you have to let someone in to help. T to start.
1. Chapter 1

**Reunion**

**Author's Note: **Well here is my second attempt at a longer fan fiction. It was something I started a while ago, so hopefully I can pick it back up and do it justice.

**Disclaimer: **I own none of the characters within this story and some lines and scenes were taken from the actual show.

**Chapter 1:**

High school! Bah! Emma stared down at her phone in disgust. The committee actually emailed her an invite to her ten year high school reunion. Like anyone there ever cared what happened to the poor, orphaned, friendless girl that she used to be. Hell, she had only attended Storybrooke High for two years. The last two years. Two of the worst years of her life if you didn't count the six months after graduation running from the law while believing she was in love and the eighteen months after in jail as a result. _Fucking, Neal! _If it hadn't been for him she would have never served that time. She had only retrieved his damn watches from the locker. He stole them and she served _his_ time. _Breathe, Swan_!

_ Storybrooke_, the name itself was almost a curse in her book. The town where strangers found her as an infant and put her in the foster system. Storybrooke, the town where the movie _Mean Girls _looked like child's play. Yeah, maybe her high school experience was more in line with _Carrie_. Emma had certainly felt like offing a few of the girls who had made her hard life before coming to town look like a fairytale.

Milah, was the worst. Her and her group of cheerleader friends tormented her at every opportunity. It was like Emma had a bull's-eye on her back from the moment she stepped into the building. Everyday they had a new sort of evil plan to ruin her day. It was a game to them. A game they were determined to win. Oh, Emma had dealt with bullies before, what child in the foster system hadn't, but these girls brought it to a whole new level. Emma shuddered just thinking of all the things she experienced at their hands. A girl with a lot less strength would have like committed suicide to get out of it. Emma told herself every day that there was only a few more days before she would finally be able to leave. If it hadn't been for Johanna, one of the kindest foster mothers Emma had actually known, she might have run off. Emma couldn't do that to her, so she stayed up until the day of graduation. She never walked down the aisle to accept her diploma, she had Johanna mail it to her in Boston because she left on that morning's bus out of town.

That was where she met Neal. _Neal Cassidy_. Another curse word in Emma's book. They had traveled the country in the yellow Volkswagen bettle they had both manage to steal. Him from the original owner and her from him, though technically she had kidnapped him too, since he was in the car when she stole it. It was in Portland, Oregon when he left her and ran off after she retrieve twenty grand of watches he had stolen. They had just had a discussion of retiring from a life of crime and moving to Tallahassee when he brought up the watches. She thought that if she got them back for him they could finally be together and be a family.

_ Family_, another bad word. It made her wish for things. Things she could never have, because life seemed to laugh at her when she reached for them.

Damnit, she needed to stop thinking of all of these things. She just needed to put all of it behind her and move on with her life like she always had. Emma swiped a tear from her eye. It didn't make sense that she would cry for things that she never got to have. It wasn't like she could miss them, if she never had them to begin with.

Emma threw her phone into the passenger seat of the yellow Beetle. The last thing she ever got from Neal. Well, not the last, but those were the last thoughts she needed on this already melancholy day. She had to get to her _date_ with the perp she needed to collect. She had already wasted three weeks on this guy, she was not about to waste any more time.

Emma's feet were killing her. She shoved her key into the lock of her apartment door, trying to balance the cupcake box in her arm. It had been such a long day already and here it was almost midnight. She shook her shoes off and tiptoed to the kitchen area of her apartment, slamming the door behind her.

The perp had been collected after a chase in her stiletto heels. Luckily, she had thought ahead and had a boot placed on his car so he couldn't get away. But getting a big fat check on her birthday was at least cause for celebration, if not for the birthday itself. What was there to really celebrate? Just another year to be by herself.

Emma grabbed the lone box of birthday candles from the drawer and placed one in the frosting of the cupcake she had bought. She lit it and watched it burn for just a few seconds.

"Another banner year." Emma couldn't have been more depressed with her life if she tried. However, that didn't keep her from making a wish that she hadn't made in a very long time.

_ Wish I didn't have to spend any more birthdays alone. _She blew out the candle and stared down at the tiny cake. _Yeah, right._

Emma started when she heard the knock at her door. _Who the hell could that be?_

She walked over and opened it. There was no one there. She looked around and then looked down. There was a young boy there with a backpack and a rather large book.

"Are you Emma Swan?"

"Yes."

"Hi. I'm Henry. I'm your son." The kid pushed his way past her and entered her apartment without ever being invited in.

"I don't have a son," she told him as she looked outside once again. Surely this kid didn't come here by himself.

"Did you give a baby up for adoption ten years ago?"

Emma closed the door and followed him in. "Well. Yes."

The kid just gave her a look similar to her own that said, _Hello, told you._

"Wait here." Emma turned and ran for her bathroom. She slammed the door behind her and slid down its solid surface. She heard him ask through the wood, "Got any juice? Never mind, I found it."

Emma took some long deep breaths. This couldn't be happening. Not now. Not after she just made a wish. This kind of thing did not happen to people like her, but apparently it was happening because she could hear the kid rummaging around her kitchen. Could this kid really be the boy that she gave up for adoption in prison all those years ago? Neal's son. The boy she couldn't even look at, because she gave birth to him handcuffed to a bed. What kind of life would that have been? No, she gave him away because this way he could have a chance at a better life than she did. Though she herself had been just a babe when she was put in the system.

_ Damnit. _She was going to have to face him and find out where he belonged. He didn't belong with her. Not anymore. Not ever. She was too young to be a mother back then, and now she was… She was too set in her ways to change. Too cynical. Too lost.


	2. Chapter 2

**Author's Note: **Thank you to the followers who have already started to enjoy my new story. I hope I can do it enough justice for you. Can't gurantee I'll get updates as quick as this in the future, but we can all hope. More likely, after I catch up to where I stopped on my story, they will come once or twice a week.

**Disclaimer: **I own none of the characters in this story.

**Chapter 2:**

**11 years ago**

"Emma. There you are," Johanna Miller called as she approached.

Emma looked up from her book at the kind older lady. She was Emma's temporary foster mother, though for how long Emma was unsure. It seemed no one wanted her to stay. The longest she had ever been anywhere was with the one family who had taken her in when she was two. Emma was young enough to think she found a place to call home, but found out quickly enough it wasn't to last. The foster parents she had found out that they were going to finally have a baby of their own and by the time Emma was almost six and her "mother" was about to have her baby, Emma found herself back in the system, looking for a new forever home. Once again, she was unwanted and alone.

"Come on, dear. I'm going to take you to the store. We need to get you some new clothes and shoes for school."

"You don't have to do that," Emma told her. "It's not like anybody will care." _Or notice, as I'm sure I won't be here long_.

"It's high school, dear. Everyone cares." Johanna took Emma by the shoulders and lead her over to the car. "I have it on good authority from my cousin, that Modern Fashion has some of the top styles that the kids at school are wearing. Her granddaughter swears by it."

"I guess." Emma reluctantly got into the passenger side of Johanna's station wagon. The back had several car seats strapped in, because of Johanna running a daycare during the week. It was closed today, as it was the weekend, so Johanna seemed determined to take care of Emma.

She had only arrived the weekend before to the woman's house. Johanna seemed nice enough, but it was easy for Emma to slip away unnoticed because of the constant care the "littles", as Emma called them, needed. Now the new school year was about to start in another week and once again Emma dreaded it. Another new school in another new town, with no friends.

They arrived at the store quickly enough. In there Emma protested every purchase that Johanna insisted she would need. New sneakers. A pair of kitten heels. Some dress flats. Three new white blouses. New underwear, which made Emma blush. And the required blue skirts and sweaters that were a must have according to Johanna, who purchased five each, so Emma would only have to worry about the laundry on the weekend.

They walked out of the store loaded down with bags. Emma felt like the kid who had everything, unit she watched a beautiful brunette around her age stroll past. She was talking on her phone and almost knocked Emma and all her bags over. The girl didn't even glance her way, let alone apologize. Emma glared at her. She might have grown up in the foster system, but at least she had some manners. To people like that girl, Emma had always been a nothing. Not to mention the guy who joined her.

He walked out of the ice cream shop like he owned the town, holding two ice cream cones. Handing one over to the girl, she pecked him on the cheek before she ended her conversation. Emma saw the girl smile at the boy before she began to lick her ice cream cone, like it was the last piece of food on earth.

_ Of course you had to eat your ice cream fast with that guy, he was hot_. His midnight black hair shined in the sun. He was tall and trim, sporting tight blue jeans and t-shirt that had some band's name on it that Emma had never heard of before. But his eyes…his eyes were what really caught her attention, bluer than the sky on a clear day at sea. Emma knew she would dream of those eyes.

"First crush?" Johann smiled at her.

Emma blushed and hurried over to the woman at the back of the car. "No. Of course not."

"He's a good kid, Killian. Hangs out with the wrong people, but still a good kid. I knew his mother before she passed away. Spitting image of her, he is." Johanna helped Emma load the packages into the trunk. "Come on. We have to pick up some groceries and then we'll head to Granny's for dinner."

"Okay." Emma walked back to the front of the station wagon and got in. "Thank you so much for the clothes. You really didn't have to."

"Actually, I did." Johanna smiled at her again. Johanna almost always had a smile on her face. "You needed the uniforms and I need to know that you'll be fine when you are out of sight. New clothes for a new school helps. Trust me, I know what it is like to be the new person to town, especially one this small. It's not easy."

Johanna winked at Emma before she started the car and headed for the grocery store. Emma looked out the window and caught another glance at the young couple strolling down the sidewalk, eating their cones and holding hands. Emma wished that one day she would have someone, who would love her enough to hold her hand as they walked.

"Miss Swan. Here is your class schedule and a map," Mother Superior told her as she handed her two pieces of paper. "We hope you'll be very happy here at Storybrooke High. If you have any questions, please be sure to stop by and I will do my best to guide you to the right answers."

"Thank you, Mother Superior." Emma juggled the papers with the stack of books she received. She set them all down on the floor next to her so she could put them inside her backpack, already half full of notebooks and other school supplies.

"Oh. Miss Swan," a harried secretary called to her. "Don't forget your locker number and combination. It is close to the cafeteria." The woman handed her another slip of paper.

"Now you better hurry, child, or you'll miss your first class." Emma was gathering the last of her books, as Mother Superior hurried her out of the office doors.

Emma looked at her schedule and the map. She had English Lit 103, on the opposite side of the building. She groaned. No matter how many times she did it, the first day at a new school sucked. Something always went wrong and apparently today was no different, as she heard the bell ring signaling one minute until class started.

"Damn." Emma began to sprint down the hall, trying her best to evade other students. She heard someone tell her to slow down, but she ignored them. When she rounded the corner she ran smack dab into the guy she had seen the week before outside the ice cream shop.

"You might want to watch out, lass. You never know what may be around the next turn." He gave a chuckle and grabbed both of their backpacks off the floor where they had fallen during the impact. Emma grabbed for her schedule and map.

"Thanks," she muttered, accepting her bag.

"No problem." Killian gave her a grin that would have melted her feet if they hadn't been made of skin and bones. The was no way she could get to class if her feet wouldn't work.

"See you around," he called to her as he stepped around her and into the nearby classroom as the final bell rand. Emma could only stand there dumbly staring at him.

"Miss Swan," she heard someone call from down the hall. "Are you planning to join us this lovely morning?"

"Yes. Coming." Emma hurried over to the young nun. "Sorry, I'm late."

The woman squeezed her shoulder. "It's okay, Emma. It's your first day here. We all make plenty of mistakes. Just try to not make a habit of it."

Emma followed her inside the classroom. The nun waved her to an empty desk. "Take your seat and we'll begin."

There was only the one seat left in the whole class. Emma tried her best to always sit in the back of classrooms where she could go unnoticed, but this one was right in the front between a wall and a girl with long brown hair pulled back into a low ponytail.

"Oh." The girl looked up at Emma as she sat down. And when Emma looked at her book, the girl flushed. "We haven't started yet, I just read ahead while we waited. I just love English."

Emma smiled back politely. The girl seemed nice enough.

"My name is Mary-Margaret. What's yours?"

"Emma." Emma shook the girl's outstretched hand.

"Well, you should like Sister Astrid. She is one of the best teachers in the whole school. And one of the nicest."

"Who was that?"

Killian Jones looked over at a jealous Milah, his girlfriend for the past two years. "I haven't seen her before. I'm guessing she's new, since she had a map of the school with her."

"Mr. Jones, we are about to start class. If you would leave your conversations until after we are through, we will not have any more issues this school year," Sister Vidia reprimanded.

"Yes, Sister." Killian grinned at her so as to reduce his scolding. He knew his charm enabled him to get out of a lot of scrapes.

Algebra II passed quickly enough, at least for Killian. He had noticed that Milah was having a harder time grasping the concepts, even for the first day. She knew that he would help her with her math whenever possible so she never complained much.

"I have to go, Killian. See you at lunch?" Milah gave him a quick kiss and waved bye. She always made sure that they had their schedules aligned so that they shared lunch together.

Killian left the room and headed out for his history class, when he heard Graham Humbert call, "Hey, mate."

"What do you want, you big git?"

"Mom heard from Liam this morning, so she told me to check up on you." Graham caught up to him as they walked down the hall.

"I'm fine. I'm eating three square meals a day. Going to all my practices and finishing all my school work. That should make them both happy." Killian was having more of a hard time adjusting to being alone. It had been years since he had been completely alone. And that was only for a couple of months. "Tell her to stop worrying and I'll tell Liam the next time I hear from him to stop telling her to check up on me."

"Easier said than done." Graham ran his fingers through his wavy locks and Killian was sure he could hear one of the freshman girls next to them sigh.

Graham wasn't a bad looking kid. A year and a half younger than Killian, Graham was a few inches taller and broader of shoulder, but he didn't quite have the "it" factor to make him get in with the popular crowd. Not that Graham seemed to mind a bit. He was happy enough in his own little world of Storybrooke outsiders. Graham usually hung around his two best friends, Mary-Margaret Blanchard and Ruby Lucas. They loved to hunt together in the woods, when they weren't at school.

"So, you see the hot new blonde lass? She seems to be new here." Killian looked over at his friend who turned sharply to stare down at him.

"No. Blonde? Hmm. Not your usual type, but nope haven't seen anyone new."

"I knew that would get your attention." Killian laughed. The two started walking again, "Well, you would notice this one."

"I'll be sure to keep an eye out."

"You might not have to she might just run into you first."

"I wouldn't be so lucky." Graham looked down at his watch. "I have to run. I have to get over to the Science Lab."

"Aye. I have Public Speaking in two minutes. I'll see you around, mate."

Graham waved at him. "Count on it. And if I run into any cute blondes, I'll keep you informed."


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: **Thank you to all the new followers. I hope everyone is enjoying the story so far. I get so excited to see the amount of people who read my stories from all over the world and I appreciate each and every one of you. And I apologize in advance for the cliff hanger.

**Disclaimer: **I own none of the characters that are within this story. They belong to Once Upon a Time and I appreciate the loan.

**Chapter 3:**

"Emma? Emma, is that you?"

Emma turned to discover a dark haired woman with a pixie cut staring at her from a back booth in Granny's Diner. "Mary-Margaret?"

Mary-Margaret jumped up from her seat and ran over to hug Emma. "I can't believe you are here."

"Me, either."

"Let me look at you." Mary-Margaret gave her the once over with a critical eye. "You look great."

"Thank you. You don't look so bad yourself. Love the new haircut." Last time Emma had seen Mary-Margaret, the day before graduation, she had wavy waist length locks. It had never stopped her though from her pursuits, hunting with Graham and Ruby Lucas being a major part of it. Mary-Margaret and her rag-tag band of friends were the only people who hung out with Emma in high school. Many refused to have anything to do with the poor orphan girl who had brought Milah's ire upon her head.

"Emma?"

Emma turned. "Ruby!"

"Emma!" She was enveloped in a bear hug. The long limbed svelte brunette may not look strong but she was able to lift Emma off the ground a few inches. "My God! You're back."

"I'm back," Emma deadpanned as Ruby put her down and let go.

"We have so much to tell you," Ruby gushed and lead them back over to where Mary-Margaret had been sitting previously.

"Ruby! This food is not going to serve itself."

"Yes, Granny." Ruby squeezed Emma in another hug before she turned to go. Emma was amazed at how quickly the young woman moved in the dangerously high heels she wore, which were paired by a barely their pair of shorts and a tied up white blouse.

"What happened to Ruby?" Emma inquired as she sat down in the booth opposite Mary-Margaret.

"She and Granny haven't been seeing eye to eye the past couple of years and well, I think that is her way of rebelling."

"It feels so strange being back here." Emma looked around the diner. "Everything still seems the same as the day I left, except everyone got older."

"Well, not everything is the same. Graham, you remember him?" When Emma nodded, Mary-Margaret continued, "He is now the Sheriff. I am an elementary teacher. I teach fourth grade."

"You always did love school," Emma joked.

"Um-hmm. And do you remember David, that guy I had a huge crush on in high school?"

"Yeah, the dreamy guy you worked with every year for Homecoming. And wasn't he also of the newsletter with you as well?"

"No that was Leroy."

"Mr. Grumpy," the said in unison and laughed.

"Okay, so what happened to David?"

"He's in a coma. He has been for the past five years. He married that Katheryn girl he dated in high school and one day he was about to leave town and file for a divorce and was in a horrible car accident." Mary-Margaret's sadness was palpable.

"I'm so sorry." Emma reached out and held Mary-Margaret's hand. She knew Mary-Margaret always had a thing for David, ever since their Junior year. They had even gone to Mary-Margaret's senior prom together after Katheryn came down with a bad cold.

"That isn't actually the worst news."

"The fact that the guy you have had a thing for is in a coma, isn't the worst? Okay let's here it."

"Well, let's see. My father married Regina Mills."

"He did what?" Emma reared up in her seat but because she was in a booth she wasn't able to stand, so she sat back down.

"Yep. Two years after we graduated. And he passed away not six months after that. She's the new mayor as well."

"Holy crap. What was that like? Having Regina as your step-mom?"

"Let's just say I was living on the streets for a while until I moved in with Ruby and Granny and found a place of my own, right after my father died. It was not pretty." Emma saw Mary-Margaret's lips tremble. Emma felt horrible that she hadn't been around to help her friend.

"Anyway, that is the not so bad news."

"Seriously? It gets worse?"

"Johanna passed away. Last year. I tried to get in touch with you, but the postcard I sent was returned undeliverable." Emma saw the tears trickle down the woman's pale face. She was surprised she didn't have some of her own. Johanna had always been so kind to Emma when she was in Storybrooke.

"I'm sorry, I wasn't here. I know that's not enough, but I am." Emma felt the strain of tears in her eyes. It was so hard to care for people in her life when she knew they would just leave again, but with Johanna, Emma was the one who left. She took off the morning of graduation, leaving behind just a note. The only other communication she had with the woman was a phone call right before she was incarcerated leaving her a post office box number in Boston if Johanna ever needed her. When Emma was in prison she had forgotten all about the box and the lease expired.

"So, if you haven't heard about Johanna, why are you back in Storybrooke? Is it for the reunion because that is still two months away?"

"No, it's not for the reunion. I only just received the invite like a week ago." Emma saw Mary-Margaret's shocked face.

"Those invites went out months ago."

Emma saw Mary-Margaret fiddle with her coffee cup. "You knew I wasn't invited."

"Well, no one knew how to get in touch with you. Even Johanna didn't have any information. I cleaned out her apartment shortly after the funeral and there was nothing. No way to contact you at all."

"I guess you are on the committee." Emma watched the nervous Mary-Margaret and felt bad for her. She new her friend would have made sure she was invited if she could have. "That's okay. I understand."

"So why are you back?" Mary-Margaret stared at her confused.

"My son."

"You have a son?" Mary-Margaret's voice squeaked her surprise.

"Henry. Henry Mills."

"He's in my class. He's your son?" Mary-Margaret's eyes grew large. "But he's Regina's son."

"I am well aware of that fact."

"Does she know?"

"Well, if she didn't before, she is well aware of the fact now. Henry tracked me down in Boston and I had to bring him back home, which is apparently here of all places." Emma couldn't believe it when Henry told her. Of course it had to be Storybrooke, Maine. The one place she had left and never once looked back. Oh, she had thought of some of the people she met here and missed them, but not many. And after dealing with Neal Cassidy and going to jail, she tried her best to put the past exactly where it belonged, in the past.

"Wow. So, I guess, we are both weirdly related to Regina now."

Emma laughed. "Strange, huh?"

"You bet. But I guess it could have been worse."

"Worse?"  
>"Yeah, it could have been Milah Gray."<p>

Emma groaned. That was a name she wished she would never have to hear again. She had been the bane of her existence in high school. Her and her clan of cheerleaders, and Regina, made life hell for Emma and anyone who associated with her. On top of that, Milah dated the only high school crush Emma ever had. One, Killian Jones, the high school quarterback. Both of them graduated the year before Emma and Mary-Margaret, but Milah didn't let her torment end just because they stopped occupying the same building for hours on end. No, she was a resourceful girl, one who cheated on the quarterback, with Mr. Gold. He was the one the whole town feared. He had a stranglehold on just about each and every resident. And Milah loved power. She craved it. So, she went and held on to the two most powerful people in town, all the while keeping Emma in her place. And Emma's place, according to Milah, wasn't even high enough to spit on her shoes.

"Sorry, Emma. I should have never said that." Mary-Margaret reached across the table and grasped Emma's hand. "I know how much that girl made your life miserable."

"It's not like she can bother me anymore," Emma responded.

"Well, she definitely can't do that."

The way Mary-Margaret said that made Emma suspect there was more going on then them just getting older and growing up. "Let's have it. What's up?"

"She's dead." Mary-Margaret looked her right in the eyes and nodded solemnly. "Story is Killian killed her in a jealous rage and ran off. No one knows for sure and those that might are not talking. The only people there that morning were, Killian, Milah, Mr. Gold and William Smee. And, well, Smee disappeared shortly after Killian took off. Everyone thinks it was because he was afraid Mr. Gold would do something to him if he talked about what happened. Some people think Smee caught up with Killian, but no one knows for sure."

"How does anyone know Killian did it and not Mr. Gold? He always seemed more the type."

"Well, first he didn't run. And, second, they were married."

"She married Mr. Gold?"

"Yes. Just a few short months after you left town."

This was almost too much for Emma to take in. So much had happened to the people she knew in this small town. There were people she spent time with that never changed at all over the years, and here, in Storybrooke, in just a short span of time, everything changed.

"But, how does anyone know for sure that Killian might have done it?"

"Someone saw him leave town covered in blood."

"Who?" Emma demanded, though really it was none of her business.

"Leroy."

"Well, if Leroy saw it, it has to be true," Emma sarcastically responded.

"I saw him, too."

Emma looked up at the new person, who stood before them. After all these years he could have looked more different and more the same.


	4. Chapter 4

**Author's Note: **Thank you for all of the follows. I appreciate each and every one of you. I hope everyone is enjoying this story. I am trying my best to keep my writing going. I am up to Chapter 10 with it, but I need to keep going. I will still try to keep getting a chapter or two typed up a week, if we are all luck maybe more.

**Disclaimer: **The characters are not my own. I have only borrowed them.

**Chapter 4:**

**11 years ago**

"Emma , I'd like you to meet Graham Humbert." Mary-Margaret introduced her to the lanky young man standing next to the booth the girls sat at in Granny's diner. "Graham, this is Emma Swan."

Emma shook the guy's hand. He was an interesting mix of boy and man. He had some scruff beginning to show along his chin and his sideburns were on the longer side. His slightly longer than collar-length, wavy, dark hair, looked a mess, as if he constantly ran his fingers through it. He had a ready grin, but it also had the air of being withdrawn, as if the smile didn't quite touch his heart. The fact that he was good friends with Mary-Margaret indicated that he had to be a good guy, as Mary-Margaret may be easy going enough, but she did not put up with pretenders.

"Hi, Graham. Nice to meet you." Emma was surprised at the hidden strength held in his fingers. His physique didn't indicate that there was much muscle tone behind it, but apparently she was wrong.

"Nice to, finally, meet you as well." His deep accented voice sent a shiver down her spine and not in a bad way. Emma didn't really have a "type" of guy she was interested in, but on first impression Graham wasn't quite it. However, if he kept talking she may have to change her mind.

"Finally?" Emma turned to the girl she had just met two weeks ago, who had the grace to blush.

"Well, it isn't everyday we get new people to town. And, Graham is one of my best friends, so, of course, he was one of the people I'd tell."

"It's okay, Mary-Margaret. I was just teasing," Emma told her reassuringly.

"So, if it isn't the new girl."

Emma turned around in her seat to see the brunette girl she had seen with Killian a few weeks ago. She had come into Granny's with a group of other girls. All but one wore the high school's cheerleading uniforms. Turning back to her new friends, Emma asked, "Who are they?"

"The cheerleaders, as know as Milah Gray, Rosaland Carver, Gretchen Stephens and Danielle Stephens."

"The one without the uniform is Regina Mills. She graduated a couple years ago," Graham supplied as he slid into the booth across from the two.

"Apparently, the new girl is too good for us. Unless she is mute." Milah laughed, and the others followed.

The group of girls stopped in front of the booth that Emma and her friends occupied. "Politeness, demands a response when someone is speaking to you, new girl."

"Politeness might demand a response, but a response would only be lost on you. So why bother?"

There was a collective gasp from all around Emma. It seemed that Milah Gray was not someone that people stood up to often.

"So, the Swan has teeth?" Regina grinned. "Watch out, Milah, she might just snap at your toes."

The girls in the group laughed, except Milah who glared down at Emma like she wanted nothing more than to kill her on the spot. When the other girls wondered off to grab an empty booth, Milah remained. "Watch your back, Swan. I saw you with Killian the other day. Stay away, he's mine."

With a toss of her long hair, she left. Emma watched her saunter over to her friends like she owned the very ground that everyone walked on. Emma turned back to her new friends and gave a snort. "Who died and made her queen? Is she for real?"

"I wouldn't mess with her, Emma. She has a very powerful friend in Mr. Gold," Mary-Margaret warned her.

"Who's Mr. Gold?"

She saw Graham's eyes widen. "You don't want to know if you haven't met him already. He pretty much owns the town and if you don't cross his path, I would count your lucky stars."

"Seriously? He's that bad?" Mary-Margaret and Graham both nodded at her.

"He is, Emma," Mary-Margaret assured her. "And the best way to keep out of his path is to keep out of Milah's."

August Booth and Killian Jones were warming up with the rest of the football team when Milah crossed the field. The two boys barely looked up from their crunches when she stood over them.

"Where have you been, Killian?" Milah accused him, her hands upon her hips.

"Here," Killian huffed out between crunches. "Practice. Last half hour."

"You were supposed to meet me after classes were over for the day," she sounded put out.

"I never said I would." Killian rose off the ground and brushed himself off, then started on the jumping jacks the rest of the team moved on to. "You assumed, when you knew I had practice."

Milah pushed herself against him, making him stop jumping. A pout was on her face and she rubbed her breasts across his chest. "I know, but at times I just want to see you. With football season, you hardly make any time for me."

"I make time. I just don't have a lot of it. I know exactly why you are here and it has nothing to do with not seeing me. Just put your bloody math homework in my pack and I'll get to it with my own." Killian began to push against her but she grabbed his arms and pressed closer.

His coach's whistle blew, signaling the end of warm-ups. "Look, I have to go. Love you, lass," he whispered against her ear, then reached down and kissed her.

"Love you, too," she said with a smile. "I'll see you tomorrow when you pick me up. My mom and I are going out to dinner and a movie tonight."

Killian nodded and shrugged out of her grasp. He saw her turn to go and he ran back to join his team. He hated to have doubts about Milah, but he loved that lass more than anything. He had begun to hear rumors the last few weeks that it wasn't Milah's mom that Mr. Gold was showing an interest in but her and that bothered him. More than just the age difference. Mr. Gold was about 10 years older than them and Milah would be eighteen next week. It was the fact that Mr. Gold sought power. He took everything he wanted without a second thought. And if it belonged to Mr. Gold, no one dared touch it, let alone thought they could possess it.

August swiped his brow with a towel and threw one over at Killian. The guy had been distracted all practice long allowing August to sack the quarterback several times during the practice session.

"Thanks, mate." Killian accepted the towel and wiped down.

"Wanna tell me what's eating you?"

"Milah."

August waited a minute, but Killian didn't elaborate. "Coach making you run laps?"

Killain grunted, which made August laugh. Killian hated running extra laps. Hell, everyone on the team did, but Killian more than the rest.

"I'll take that as a yes. If I didn't have a biology exam tomorrow, I'd run them with you." August gathered his equipment and shoved his helmet into his bag.

"It's a good thing I don't have to meet Milah tonight. With the extra laps and the load of homework I have to get done, I'll be lucky if I can even make dinner for myself."

Killian looked exhausted. August didn't know how he did it. The guy worked all weekend long at Granny's, as well as Tuesday and Thursday nights. He had school all day, then practice just about every afternoon. Games most Fridays or Saturdays, and homework. And he still found the time to manage to clean up after himself at home, and cook, as well as date Milah. As far as August could tell, the guy was secretly Superman.

At the same time, August felt bad for the guy. He lived by himself for the past two years in the apartment above Modern Fashion, ever since he moved out of the Humbert place. His brother, Liam, had been overseas and, beside the occasional leave, had hardly seen his younger brother. Their mother died shortly after Killian was born and their father… Well, no one in town really knew the story about their father. Sure there was a lot of rumors, but as far as August could tell, not many knew the truth.

"Tell you what. I have to go to Granny's to pick up dinner for my father and I, so why don't I grab you something too?"

Killian, who had begun to stretch before his run, smiled. "Thanks, mate. I appreciate it. I should be done in about an hour or so. If you could just order it, I'll pick it up on the way home."

"Okay." August slung his bag over his shoulder. "Burger and fries with everything?"

"You go it," Killian called as he began to jog away. "Thanks again."

August watched him. A lot of people around school either wanted to date Killian or be him. August wanted neither. He was just happy to be counted as one of the guy's friends, when despite appearances, Killian didn't have many.


	5. Chapter 5

**Author's Note: **I changed the rating of this story to T for now. Though there is still some language. Eventually, as relationships begin to progress, the rating will go up to M, for making tacos, aka, smut. I will have in the author's notes, when the rating will go up for that chapter. Thank you to all of my followers. I appreciate each and every one of you. And for the reviewer who was disappointed by August, instead of David, I'm sorry. But he is important and you may discover more as to why I chose him in this chapter. This chapter is longer than most and I hope everyone enjoys.

**Disclosure: **I own none of the characters in this story.

**Chapter 5:**

Emma looked up at Graham Humbert. Emma's eyes widened at the sight of him. He had certainly filled out over the years and with his partial beard, he was the epitome of masculinity. "Graham," she greeted him.

"Emma."

Emma slid out of the booth and Graham enfolded her in his arms. Mary-Margaret had always told her back in high school that Graham had a crush on her, but she had pushed it to the side, without a second thought. Now that she looked him over, she noticed he did the same with her, interest filling his eyes. If there was one thing she learned after all her years living place to place after losing her naiveté dealing with Neal, it was how to read people.

"Heard there was a stranger in town. Well, you might be strange, but no stranger," he joked, after releasing her from his arms.

Emma stuck her tongue out at him, like a petulant child. He tapped it and she quickly drew it back in her mouth.

"It still looks sharp. I better watch my step." Graham chuckled at his own joke and Emma couldn't help but laugh as well.

"I heard I better watch mine, _Sheriff_," she teased back.

Graham turned serious. "Speaking of that, you just might. In case you didn't know, Regina Mills is mayor now and she doesn't appreciate you being back in town and trying to get in contact with her son."

"My son."

"Your son?" Graham looked confused.

"I gave him up for adoption. He found me and I came back here with him. But, of course, you already know this." Emma slid back in the booth across from Mary-Margaret, but did not take her eyes off the sheriff.

"It might have come up."

"Before or after having sex with her?" Ruby asked as she approached. She handed the sheriff a Styrofoam cup.

"Watch it, Rub. You flip over backwards faster than I do."

"You might think so, but no." Ruby stood there with her arms crossed. She was a sight to behold to she was mad, which wasn't often.

The two of them stood there glaring at each other. Neither appearing like they were about to back down anytime soon. Emma almost wondered if it wasn't jealousy that was leading to this confrontation.

"I know you don't like Regina…"

"With good reason." Ruby there her hands on her hips, her eyes never wavering from the sheriff's. Emma did not doubt that if this kept up she would be breaking up a fight between the two. And, frankly, her money was on Ruby.

"But she can be…"

"A bitch," Ruby responded.

"Stop finishing my sentences wrong."

"Go be a sheriff, Graham, and get out of my grandmother's diner."

Ruby stormed off. She went to the kitchen and came back out with food, slamming it down in front of very nervous customers.

"Trouble in paradise?" Emma asked nodding toward the normally effervescent Ruby.

Graham, who had also been watching Ruby storm around the diner, turned back to Emma and Mary-Margaret. "Ever since Regina had me arrest her for prostitution."

"What?" Emma glanced back and forth between Graham and Mary-Margaret, who was nodding her head. "Your kidding."

"Wish I was." Graham took a drink from his cup. "Regina saw her dressed as she does standing on the street corner."

"She was at the bus stop," Mary-Margaret chimed in. "She was hardly peddling her wares."

"I know that and you know that, but Regina was doing a ride-along to evaluate my job performance and I couldn't very well say no to the mayor." Graham had the grace to look ashamed.

"You sleep with this woman?" Emma asked incredulously.

"I swear she has me enthralled. It's like I just can't quit seeing her, no matter how much I may want to. Plus, she's the mayor. If I stop, she very well may see to it that I am fired and can no longer get a job in this town."

"Oh, Graham." Emma reached out for his hand and gave it a sympathetic squeeze. He squeezed back. "If you need to get out of town for a while, you can always use my apartment back in Boston. Hell, if you just want to leave Storybrooke completely, I'll sublet it to you."

Graham let go of her hand before she did. "I just may take you up on that offer." He looked down at his watch. "I need to go. It was good seeing you again, Emma."

"You, too, Graham."

Mary-Margaret drew Emma's attention back to her, after Graham left the diner. "So, what's your plans? Are you going to stay until the reunion or just a few more days?"

"I really don't know." Emma couldn't very well answer a question that she hadn't come up with an answer yet.

"Stay for a while. Get to know Henry."

"I think I just might. But I do have a life in Boston. I can't stay here forever." Emma started calculating in her head the expenses that were required for her to remain, especially with no income coming in.

"You could stay with me. That would free up some of the expenses. I have an extra room." Mary-Margaret looked hopeful. "Plus, it would be fun. We never had a chance to talk since you left town and I would love to hear more of what has been going on."

Emma thought for a second. "You know what? That sounds like a great idea."

Killian Jones hacked into Granny's surveillance system and watched Emma Swan interact with her high school friends. It hadn't been since Halloween night, Emma's senior year, that he had seen her. His little duckling, as he teased her a few times, had turned into a graceful swan, so reminiscent of her name.

She wasn't his intended target when he pirated the system, but he wasn't sorry to se her. He knew Gold usually showed up on Tuesday evenings to collect his money. Almost everyone, paid the man money and the one's who refused found themselves out of business. Johanna, the woman who had taken in Emma, had run a successful daycare for decades. A few years ago, she had gotten seriously ill and she had to reduce the number of children she took in as well as staff. Her medical bills piled up and she found herself unable to pay them, let alone Gold. Next thing anyone in town knew, she was out of business, as everyone had been warned against her. With no income, she grew weaker without the medication needed to stall her sickness and she succumbed to her disease.

He shook himself out of his musings, they were distracting him from his goal. Killian saw Mary-Margaret and Emma get up out of their booth, shortly after the sheriff left. He paused the monitor when Emma was dead center and enlarged the picture to get a better look at her. Arranging it so that the stopped image would appear on a separate screen, Killian subconsciously lifted his hand to reach out to her, but it was only after his arm was in sight that he realized he had held out his left arm that was missing a hand. The very hand he had lost in his attempt to stop Mr. Gold from killing Milah.

Killian knew everyone in town thought he did it. Mr. Gold doing his best to compile fake evidence against him. Now it was Killian's turn to gather evidence, but in his own favor. He had been doing it for over a year now. And when he felt like he had enough, he would bring it to the DA and clear his name.

"You still here?"

Killian jumped at the voice and turned in his office chair. August Booth stood there leaning on the doorframe. In his hands he held two beers, and from the condensation trickling down, Killian knew he just retrieved them from the office fridge. As August approached, Killian turned back and quickly shut down the monitor with Emma's picture on it. When August set a beer in front of Killian, he thanked him and grabbed the offered beverage.

"Yeah. I just sent Smee home. For some reason, I just had to see his face tonight."

"His or hers?" August jerked his thumb to the only monitor that was turned off.

Killian couldn't deny it, but he wasn't going to admit it either, for there was no answer to both. "I didn't even know she was in town."

August who had sat down in the other office chair, flushed slightly, causing Killian to raise his eyebrow in question. "You knew?"

"Well, I might have hacked the system to make sure she got the invite to the reunion."

"And…" Killian prompted. He knew the reunion alone would not have brought Emma back to Storybrooke.

"Well…" August hesitated, fiddling with the label on his beer. "I might have sent an anonymous email and gift card to Henry to ."

"Henry? Regina's son? What does he have to do with all of this?" Killian glared at his friend. August was known for telling the truth, but keeping secrets was one of his fortes as well.

"He's happens to be Emma's son. Regina adopted him not knowing that he was hers."

"How the bloody hell did you find that out if even Regina did not know?" Killian sat up straighter in his chair. His thoughts and eyes completely distracted from the monitors in front of him.

August, however, just leaned back in his. He propped his legs on the table housing the surveillance equipment, seeming nonplussed by the sudden drop of information. "I kept dibs on her. Johanna asked me to. Emma wasn't exactly the I'll write you back type."

"No, she's definitely not."

"You have the hots for her." August abruptly sat up in his chair, his legs falling to the floor. "I just thought you wanted to keep an eye on her because you felt bad over what Milah did to her, but you actually like her."

Killian avoided the other man's eyes, turning back to the monitors. August had a thing about people lying to him, ever since he almost died because of a lie he told. Because of that, Killian rarely did, now was not one of those times. "No. Of course not. I haven't seen her in about nine years and even then I was involved with Milah. I loved Milah, remember?"

"Keep telling yourself that, man. One day, you might actually believe it." August slammed his empty bottle onto the table. "I know you thought you loved Milah, hell, maybe you did, you sure seemed hell bent on revenge because of her, but c'mon. You have let yourself be miserable these last ten years over a woman who couldn't even marry you. A woman who's only goal in life was to possess power and freedom. One she got from Mr. Gold and the other from you."

August reached out and turned Killian's chair so he had no choice but to look at him. "But did she love you? Really love you? I doubt it."

"I loved her." Killian could feel the press of tears in his eyes.

"Yeah. I really think you did. You wouldn't be here, doing this if you hadn't." August waved his hands at the monitors. "But revenge is not living. You have to live. Love may still be out there, but sitting here, waiting for a man to screw up, so you can finally go and throw his ass in jail is not living."

"What the bloody hell do you know about living? You're a bloody puppet to the government."

"My job with the _bloody government, _as you call it, keeps you in all this expensive equipment." August motioned throughout the room. "Just remember that as you go to sleep tonight."

August stormed out of the room. Killian did not mean to piss off his friend, but sometimes August did not know when to stop pushing. He was the one that for years made Killian, question why he went along with some of the things Milah asked him to do. Hell, August was the one Killian ran to, when he was bleeding and in pain from losing his hand. If August hadn't helped him then and now, Killian wouldn't be sitting here today.

Killian turned the monitor back on with Emma's picture. He saved it to his own personal folder and turned the monitor back off. Needing the reinforcement, Killian drained his almost forgotten beer, that he had set aside in his argument with August. Then he watched as Mr. Gold strode into Granny's diner without a care in the world, leaning heavily on the cane that he needed for his constant limp. Killian saw Granny open the register and pull out an envelope and hand it to Gold. He even saw Gold smile, his slick, aggravating grin, while he pocketed the money. Without a doubt, Killian knew his day of reckoning with Mr. Gold was quickly approaching. And he knew that when that day came, he would show Mr. Gold that the boy he thought he destroyed was a man who had nothing left to lose.


	6. Chapter 6

**Author's Notes: **Thank you for the great reviews. I am glad to see everyone enjoying my story. Thank you so much. Enjoy.

**Disclaimer: **As usual I do not own any of the characters in this story.

**Chapter 6:**

**11 years ago**

"Homecoming," Emma disdainfully said to herself, as she stared at the poster next to her locker.

"You going?" Ruby popped up out of nowhere and leaned against the offending poster.

"To see a football game? Not in your life, especially as Milah and her clan of evil gypsies have to be there." Emma slammed her locker closed. "As if they haven't caused me enough grief."

"You should have let me hit her when she glued your gym locker shut." Ruby began to walk with Emma down the hall to the cafeteria nearby. They both had lunch together, which Emma was eternally thankful for since Milah and her group had lunch at the same time.

"That's what you said after she _accidentally_ dropped paint all over me and when she _conveniently_ lost control of her car and ran me off the road last week."

"Well, the bitch has it coming. And one day, I'm going to ignore you and just let her have it." Ruby popped her gum. She always had a piece of gum in her mouth between classes, ignoring the school's no gum rule. Where she put it before she went to class, Emma had no clue and was too disgusted to ask.

The two of them entered the cafeteria and all noise stopped. Everyone turned to look at the two of them. Emma turned to Ruby, this couldn't be good. What did Milah have in store for them today? "What the hell is going on?"  
>"Like hell if I know, but my guess is this definitely smells like Milah's doing."<p>

Every kid in the room watched the two girls cross the cafeteria to the food line, which oddly enough there wasn't one. The girls grabbed trays and looked for the food aides who weren't in sight. Not only were there no people, there was no food.

"Pigs like you should just eat the slops in the trash." Milah appeared in front of them. "Your kind shouldn't be entitled to eat like the rest of us."

"Come on, Milah. Leave the lasses alone."

Emma saw Milah turn to Killian who stood behind her. She glared at her boyfriend for his interference. "Oh. Isn't that precious? You want to defend them?"

"They haven't done anything to you, love." Killian gave a dimpled grin at Milah, doing his cute puppy face, that Emma had seen before when he coaxed Milah his way. "Let's leave them be and go enjoy our lunch. We need to plan what to wear for the homecoming dance."

Emma was pretty sure any high school guy could care less about what to wear to a dance, but she was grateful for his help. Unfortunately, she was sure that Milah would label this as her fault for convincing Killian to leave them alone. Milah seemed to take a personal interest in making Emma's life a living hell and the only clue she had was that Milah thought Emma wanted Killian. Yet, until this moment, she had not even had any contact with him since the first day of school, other than seeing him across the cafeteria eating with Milah and her friends.

Killian led Milah away. She was happily chatting about some sort of matching outfits, which Emma furious that Milah could go from a pure devil to a common high school girl. Ruby just laughed and Emma wished in a way she could join her, but she was afraid of drawing any more of Milah's ire.

Ruby linked her arm through Emma's and led her over to the wall laden with vending machines. Emma wouldn't have minded, but she didn't have more than two dollars on her. It was enough for her lunch at the school cafeteria, but it wouldn't go far in the vending machines and Emma hated to be indebted to anyone, especially a friend.

"He's so cute. I can't wait until you meet him on Saturday."

Emma barely heard the end of Mary-Margaret's conversation. Several of the "littles" were at Johanna's house later than usual because of the town meeting and Emma had promised Johanna to help watch them. Emma switched the phone to the other ear and picked up one young boy's pacifier to wash it off before she returned it back to him.

"Who's cute?"

"David Nolan. Emma, have you even been paying attention?"

"Sorry," Emma apologized. "It's pretty hectic over here."

"No. I'm sorry. I forgot it was the night of the town meeting. You'd think I'd remember with my father being mayor and all." Emma heard Mary-Margaret laugh sub-consciously.

"It's okay. So, David Nolan, huh…" Emma surveyed the kids around her pleased no one need her attention for a second. She leaned against the wall, to listen to Mary-Margaret's explanation all over again.

"He's on the homecoming committee with me. He's a sophomore. And I think he like me too."

"So, ask him to the dance." Emma saw one of the girls drop her sippy cup and rushed over to help her pick it up. Johanna was off in the corner rocking one of the younger ones to sleep.

"He already has a date, with Kathryn. She's a sophomore, too, and in his science class."

"So, who are you going with? Graham?"

Johanna waved at Emma to grab the little one off her lap, so she walked over and picked her up and laid her on one of the mats off to the side of the playroom. Emma watched Johanna pick up another one and begin the process all over again.

Emma heard Mary-Margaret sigh. "No. He's going with Ruby."

"Really? Graham and Ruby?" Emma just thought they were friends. She never would have guessed the two would go out together, but maybe there was more to them then she realized.

"Apparently, Graham wanted to ask someone else, but Ruby needed a date because she was nominated for homecoming queen."

Emma swiped her brow with her t-shirt. It was getting quite hot with all the little bodies in the room. "I didn't even realize she was running. I would have voted for _her_."

Emma caught Johanna's attention and waved at her to let her know she was going to step outside for a minute to cool off and get away from the noise.

"I love Ruby to bits, but we all know Milah will win. She's a senior. She's head cheerleader and she's dating Killian Jones, the high school quarterback, and quite frankly one of the most popular kids in school. He won homecoming king for the past two years. I really wouldn't bet against him winning this year."

"As if that guy's ego needed any more stroking." Emma might not have hung around the guy that much or even had a conversation with him, but she saw his arrogance full force during lunch times. And with his charming grins and good looks he knew he could easily charm just about anyone.

"He's not so bad, Emma. He's had it rough, just like you."  
>"Emma! Nicholas just threw up. Can you watch the kids while I clean him up?" Johanna called out through the window.<p>

"Look, I gotta go. Johanna needs me. I'll talk to you tomorrow at school."

"Don't forget to bring lunch," Mary-Margaret reminded her.

"Homecoming King is none other than our own, Killian Jones," Sister Astrid announced to the crowd of students patiently waiting by the stage. "And now for our Homecoming Queen."

She opened the envelope Mother Superior handed her. "Our Homecoming Queen for the year 1999 is… Milah Gray."

The auditorium cheered as the Homecoming King and Queen took the stage. Sister Astrid and Mother Superior crowned the two, who smiled and waved to their fellow students. The couple then went down to the dance floor and the crowd parted to let them pass. A song started and the two of them began to sway to the beat.

Mr. Gold's stare never left the couple. He didn't like seeing Milah with that young man. She was his. She would always be his. Nothing and no one was ever going to change that.

He would just have to remind Milah of that fact the next time they were to meet. Which, was the next evening at dinner. He hated having to wait for the eighteen year old to graduate high school to get his hands on her, but that was the deal that had been struck. And the sooner, everyone involved realized that Gold did not share his property, the sooner everyone could proceed with their lives.


	7. Chapter 7

**A/N: **Hope all of you are enjoying the story. Thanks for all of the follows and reviews.

**Disclaimer: **I own none of the characters in this story.

**Chapter 7:**

"Seriously? You're making me dress like Tinkerbelle?" Emma spun away from the mirror to address Mary-Margaret. "Why do I get the super short pixie outfit, while you get to wear a ball gown?"

"If it makes you feel any better, I can barely breath in this corset and my boobs feel like they are about to fall out." Mary-Margaret stepped around Emma to look in the mirror. She plucked at the neckline of her dress for about the hundredth time in less than a half-hour. Then she straightened the large blond wig sitting atop her head, as it had become skewed when she had leaned down to adjust her shoes.

"These were the only two dresses I could snag in your sizes at the last minute," Ruby insisted as she walked into the room.

"Yeah, says the girl with actual clothes on, _for once_," Emma whined. She felt entitled, just a little. Okay, so Mary-Margaret might have been justified as well, since Emma had accidentally spilled coffee on her original costume.

Ruby just smiled at the two of them. She was dressed in a comfortable frock with a large red cloak and a basket hung off her arm with candy inside for the trick-or-treaters at the door. She made a very convincing Little Red Riding Hood.

"Plus," Ruby added as she walked to the front door of Mary-Margaret's apartment, as the doorbell rang. "I heard a certain married man was going dressed as Prince Charming."

Ruby was referring to David Nolan, of course. He had just woken up from his coma a week and a half ago. Mary-Margaret helped him each day during his recovery and the man had seemed to go attached to her. Now that he was out of the hospital, he followed Mary-Margaret everywhere, even to school. He reminded Emma of a lost puppy who had decided that Mary-Margaret would be his new owner. Unfortunately, David's wife wanted to start fresh and that was causing some serious problems for the two lovebirds.

Mary-Margaret blushed, which was easily discernable with her pale skin and overly exposed chest. "I thought Prince Charming wooed Snow White, not Cinderella."

"Same difference. They are both princesses." Ruby shrugged and closed the door behind the trick-or-treaters.

Emma laughed. "I'll have to check with Henry when we get there. He seems to be the expert on all things fairytale."

"Yeah, and a little birdy let slip at Granny's that her son was dressing like Peter Pan, while a certain Sheriff was coming as Captain Hook." Ruby went to the discarded mirror and primped.

"So, why didn't Regina dress as Tinkerbelle?" Emma scoffed.

"She's the mayor. You think she is going to run around like a _fairy_?" Ruby laughed so hard she had to drop her basket and grab her side. "You are too funny."

Mary-Margaret perched as best she could on one of her stools. "I heard she is coming as the Evil Queen."

Ruby's chuckles subsided. "Well, that must be why I heard that Sidney Glass was coming as the mirror from Snow White. He has the total hots for her and she is completely oblivious. Of course, with her stringing Graham along, I can't really blame her."

"Poor Graham. Is he even feeling well enough to come tonight?" Mary-Margaret asked. She had seen him when he had come to the hospital, which she shared with the rest of them. "Last I heard from Whale, he was good enough to get off antibiotics, but was still on bed rest."

When Dr. Whale's name was mentioned, Ruby perked up, common for her lately. "How is the good doctor?"

"He should be there tonight, Ruby." Mary-Margaret gave her friend a sly look. "Why don't you see for yourself."

"Free liquor. Scantily dressed women in costume. Yeah, even I could guess Whale would be there," Emma chimed in, as she put on her ankle boots.

Ruby scoffed, but turned red. Then quickly asked, " Did he say what he would be dressed as?"

"No, Ruby. And I didn't ask." Mary-Margaret stood up and grabbed her mask from the counter behind her.

"That's okay. I'll find him.  
>"You always do." Emma laughed along with Mary-Margaret.<p>

Ruby held her mask up. "Everyone have your masks?"

Emma held hers up and Mary-Margaret did the same. "Let's get this town tradition over with."

Graham looked up from his sick bed, at the man who dressed as Captain Hook in front of the bathroom mirror. "It should work," he mumbled. "I mean no one will think you're me, but they won't quite realize it is you."

"Thanks for doing this, mate." Killian turned away from the mirror and exited the bathroom, straightening his leather sleeves as he went.

"Well, you always had more a chance with her than I did. And now with the mayor…"

"What are you talking about, mate?" Killian stopped and swung back around to Graham.

"Emma. You're doing this…" Graham waved at Killian dressed in his costume. "Taking the risk someone might see you, for Emma."

"No. I'm not. I need to see what Gold might be up to tonight and there are no cameras accessible to me."

"Don't lie to me. I've know you too long. We've been friends since kindergarten. My parents helped your dad after your mum passed away. Then took you and Liam in when he left." Graham coughed. "Hell, my dad even went out of his way to help Liam pursue his naval career."

"Thanks for that, mate. But I don't see what that has to do with…"

Graham cut him off and struggled to sit up. "For God's sake, mate, I gave you the keys to my dad's truck so you could get out of town after Gold took your hand. The least you can do is be honest with me."

Killian paled and sat next to Graham on the bed. "There isn't anything I could ever do to repay you for that."

Graham reached out his hand and Killian clasped the still warm palm. "I know you want to catch Gold and call him out for all he has done, but I also know you had to have found out Emma was back. Hell, I think you know what goes on in this town more than I do, and I'm the bloody sheriff."  
>Killian grinned. "Wouldn't doubt that. You spend too much time with the mayor."<p>

"Stuff it, Jones. I just know that tonight, this is more than just about Gold. Just do me one favor and keep a low profile."

"Will do."

Graham released his hold on his friend as Killian stood up. "And don't break her heart."

"Emma's? Bloody hell, mate. I know you've had a thing for her for years. I didn't realize you were still in love with her." Killian raked his hand through his hair in apparent frustration.

"Maybe. I think so. Hell, I don't know." Graham fell back on the bed. If his body hadn't ached before, it sure hurt now. "It's all your fault, you know. If you hadn't told me about the hot chick you saw in the high school office, I might not have started to look for her."

Graham began to laugh, but the chuckles quickly turned to coughs. He hated being sick. Killian reached out and lifted him up and slapped him on the back. When the coughs stopped, Killian helped him lay back down.

"For the record, I did not say she was hot."

"Oh, yes you did," Graham choked out from his dry throat.

Killian walked over to the small kitchenette that Graham possessed and got him a glass of water. When he handed it to Graham, he asked, "So do you think anyone will recognize me?"

Killian reached out and grabbed his mask and put it on. Then grabbed the hook and cuff and attached those to his left hand. Then proceeded to spin in front of Graham for inspection.

"Pretty sure. Now if Milah was…" Graham looked away sheepishly. "Sorry, mate."

"It's okay." Killian placed his unhooked hand on Graham's shoulder. "Get some rest. This town needs its sheriff."

"Good luck, Killian. May the wind blow in your favor." Graham leaned back on his pillow and closed his eyes.

Killian turned away from his friend, a goal firmly set in his mind. He quietly let himself out of Graham's apartment. He gave a sharp salute in the direction of Graham's bedroom. "I promise, I won't let you down, mate."

He looked both ways and hurried for the alleyway. Despite the costume, he did not want to take any extra chances of anyone taking notice of him. He would have enough to worry about once he was at the party. So long as no one took the time to think that Killian Jones might have returned to Storybrooke, he had a chance that no one would think that the dashing Captain Hook might be him.


	8. Chapter 8

**A/N: **Thank you for all the reviews, favorites and follows. I appreciate each and every one, as I am still new to the fan fiction scene.

**Disclosure: **I own none of the characters in this story.

**Chapter 8:**

**11 years ago**

_ The Halloween Dance! God! _This town had a party for everything. Mary-Margaret had drug Emma here because she was determined to introduce David Nolan to her.

Mary-Margaret arrived at Johanna's door to pick Emma up dressed as a Mayan princess. Her long dark hair done in plaits that stretched down her sides. She was beautiful and Emma wished just a little to be like her friend. Emma, on the other hand, felt awkward and gawky in her old-fashioned bar wench outfit. The only part of the outfit that had any semblance of making it work was her chest, that was greatly enhanced with a push-up bra and a corset. And both were extremely uncomfortable.

Emma, who had just recently gotten glasses, set them to the side. There was no way she was going to the dance dressed like this with black-rimmed glasses. Like she already didn't look enough of a geek playing dress up. Once more she wished that the contacts Johanna had ordered for her were ready, but it was not to be, her life just was not a fairytale where things fell into place for her.

When they arrived, Emma hung around the sides of the room. If she blended in really well, she hoped Milah and her group wouldn't notice her tonight. Ruby, on the other hand, did nothing but stick out. She was dressed in killer platform heels and in a tight seventies jumpsuit. She just needed a disco ball and she was all set. Emma wished to even have half the confidence Ruby had.

Couples danced and swayed by, making Emma feel even more inadequate. She had never learned to dance. She might be able to manage to sway back and forth, but that was it. Then again, this was Storybrooke and swaying did not seem like it was enough in this town. No, the residents of Storybrooke could dance. And several times during the night, Emma felt like she had been transported back to a ball during Regency England, with the type of dances they performed. Emma had been to a couple of dances before, reluctantly, of course, during her time in other foster homes, but no dance had she ever been to had been like this one. She would never be able to live up their standards.

Emma sighed. She needed to get out of here. She tried to flag down Mary-Margaret, but she was so engrossed in her conversation with Graham, David and Kathryn that she barely took any notice of her waves. Emma slipped out the door, grabbing the cloak that went with her costume as she exited. She wrapped it around her and placed the hood over her hair, as the night was rather cool, but surprisingly not as cold as Emma expected it to be around the middle of fall in Maine.

She didn't want to return to Johanna's quite yet, where she would be peppered with questions about the dance. So, Emma turned toward the edge of town. There was a hill in the woods that overlooked Storybrooke. Emma would sneak off to it whenever she wanted time to herself. Graham and Ruby had shown it to her about a month ago, when they dragged her out on one of their hunts.

She found a large rock and sat down in front of it. Emma reclined back against it and watched the lights from town. It wasn't until she heard a twig snap behind her that she even worried about being alone in the secluded area during the night. She crouched down further behind the rock with the hope that whoever was there wouldn't notice her.

Emma peered around the rock when it was quiet once more. That's when she noticed Killian Jones with a spyglass to his eye, staring at the stars. He didn't seem to have noticed her, so she just watched him. He moved with such fluid grace, yet every movement seemed methodical. Beside what Johanna had told her all those weeks ago, Emma did not know much about the high school quarterback. But she did know that she watched him every day at lunch.

She had the hugest crush on the guy. From his dark locks to his blue eyes to his athletic form, which was neither too bulky or too skinny. How many times had she fallen asleep and dreamed of kissing him? She lost count. But it was nothing more than that. Just dreams. He was dating Milah and when you saw the two of them together there was no doubt in anyone's mind of how much Killian was in love with her. That was the only flaw she could find with the guy. And to know that a guy like that could have such devotion, wasn't exactly a detractor.

"Hello there, lass. What brings you out here?"

_ Damn_. She had been caught. "Just trying to find a quiet spot to hide."

When Killian stepped closer, she realized he was also dressed in costume. He looked very regal in his, what she guessed to be, sixteenth century garb. He looked very princely. His buff colored coat was accented with black leather and his black pants and boots only helped his already svelte figure stand out to perfection. He was fit for a ball. A Storybrooke Halloween Ball to be exact.

"I was out for a stroll myself. The skies are awfully clear tonight." Killian walked over and sat down beside her.

"You're clothes are going to get dirty," she protested and shifted over a little so he would be able to also lean against the rock.

"Pish Posh."

"Really? Who says that?" Emma began to chuckle.

Killian gave her a look of fake outrage in an overly dramatic gesture. "My brother Liam, for one."

But then he laughed with her. And his laugh she could listen to all day. Hell, with his lovely accent, she could just sit there for the rest of the night and listen to him recite the dictionary. Maybe her spelling would improve that way.

"Is that a spyglass? I heard something around school about your brother being a sailor. Is it his?" Emma watched him turn serious. She felt horrible that she had taken his laughter away. His gaze turned to the lights of the town, but he seemed lost in thought.

Finally, after Emma thought he was just going to ignore her, he spoke. "No, lass, it's mine. I've had it as long as I can remember. My brother once hinted that it may have been our father's, but that is one subject the Jones family has decided is off-limits."

"I'm sorry. I didn't mean to pry." Emma reached out and grasped the cuff to his jacket sleeve. He turned and gave her a smile. His hand reached out and covered hers. His thumb caressing the top of her hand.

"It's alright, lass. You didn't know." His smile deepened and she couldn't help but smile back, despite the tingles running up her spine from his touch. "So, why are you really up here by yourself, love?"

Emma's smile crashed back into a thin line. She couldn't very well tell him she was running away from his girlfriend and her friends and couldn't dance. She was pretty sure since he grew up her he had to be a terrific dancer. So she lied, "To just get some fresh air and look at the stars. When I lived in Boston, you couldn't really see them clearly. Here they are so beautiful."

He nudged her with his shoulder. "Well, one day, lass, I'll show you all the constellations. But, right now, if I don't get to this bloody dance, Milah will have my head."

He stood up and brushed himself off, then reached out and extended her hand to help her up as well. He bowed briefly over her hand and kissed the top of it. "Milady. It was very nice talking to you."

He let go of her hand and turned to leave. She watched him go, wishing he did not have to. Then he stopped and turned back, catching her watching him. She blushed. He walked back and handed her his spyglass. "Here."

She looked up into his azure gaze. "I can't take that. I wouldn't want to break it."

Emma had never been trusted to something so special. If anything, all her life she had been warned away from such things, being told that it wasn't hers to touch, let alone possess.

"It's okay, love. I do believe you'll return it." He gave her a quick wink. ""Look at the stars and think of me suffering at the dance that you were able to escape from."

He stood there and held the spyglass out. When she took it, her gave her a smile and a nod. "See you around, Swan."

With that he was gone. Emma did nothing but think about Killian Jones that night. She looked up at the stars through his lens and felt the warmth of his hand on the metal. She might have had a small crush on the guy before tonight, just mainly because she found him handsome, but after tonight, after getting to know a little more about him, she knew she was in deep.

Emma stayed in the clearing for another hour before she went back home. When Johanna asked her if she had a good time, Emma said yes. Johanna gave her a smile and a quick hug before she returned to bed. Emma wandered back into her room and placed Killian's spyglass on her nightstand. It would be the first thing she would see the next morning. A morning that warned her that if she returned it back to him, Milah would find out and make life that much worse. So, Emma placed the glass in her backpack and hurried off to school to find Graham. He should be able to return it to Killian without any extra repercussions. Of course, she never figured that Graham would give her the third degree on how she got it.


	9. Chapter 9

**A/N: **Thank you to all my followers. You don't know how much I appreciate each and every one of you. I decided to expand this chapter a little further just because all of you deserve it. Enjoy.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters within this story.

**Chapter 9:**

Emma stood in the corner of the recreation hall nursing her beer. If she really did possess fairy magic like Tinkerbelle, she would have used it to separate her son even just for a few minutes from Regina. Unfortunately, she was stuck here biding her time until she could see him, otherwise what had been the point to coming to another one of these stupid parties.

She caught a flash of silver in the corner of her eye from across the room. _Thank God_. Graham must have been feeling well enough to come. Since Mary-Margaret was off in some corner with David and Ruby was plastered to Whale dressed as Frankenstein's monster, Graham was her only hope of having a half-way decent time at this event. Or, maybe, she could enlist his help to distract Regina so she could see Henry.

Emma weaved around Harry Potter, Snow White, munchkins and even a frog prince on her journey across the room. When the Mad Hatter got a little grabby, she just shoved his hands away and proceeded over to where there was a bar set up. For a dance that catered to everyone of all ages, Emma had always been surprised by the sight of the bar. Though it seemed that this town was very mindful of staying on the right side of the law, and you hardly ever saw underage drinking. Even when Emma was a teen, it was a rare sight.

Finally, she stood behind the leather clad Captain Hook. Graham must have decided to wear a wig because the black inky hair had no correlation to his usual light brown wavy locks. No this hair, screamed sex. Running your hair through it multiple times a night, sex. Emma shook her head. This was Graham she was talking about. Her boss. They guy she went to school with. The guy who had had a crush on her for years.

She tapped him on the shoulder and waited for him to turn away from the bar. Once he faced her she noticed he had an older bottle with a naval insignia in his good hand, which he had been imbibing. If Emma hadn't already had a few beers, it might not have taken her so long to notice that his mannerisms were quite different from the sheriff's. She wasn't even sure what first clued her in to the difference, but when he invaded her personal space with his whole body and breathed out her name as if he found his salvation, she knew she had accosted the wrong pirate captain.

She turned to leave, to escape the mixed feelings of knowing this guy knew who she was and the fact that she found him downright sexy when she had no idea who _he_ was. Emma might have gotten away, too, if his reflexes were any less sharp. He had caught her wrist with his hook, and despite the gleaming metal, Emma wasn't afraid. What could happen to her in this crowded room, without the whole town being away of it in seconds? Hell, Leroy was just three feet away. He tugged her to him and she found herself as close to him as before.

"Seems I've caught myself a fairy." His voice drew her eyes up to his. His face was mostly covered by a black mask, but his eyes were visible. A translucent blue that made you think of calm water and sex on the beach. She really did need to get hold of her hormones. It had been too long since she had gotten laid.

"Let go, _Hook_."

"Have a drink with me." The pirate offered up his bottle and released her wrist.

Emma knew she had probably had enough to drink, but just being in this man's presence caused her throat to go dry. "Screw it."

She reached out and took the offered beverage and took a deep swallow. Her eyes watered as the liquid burned down her throat. "What the hell is that?" she choked. "Lighter fluid?"

Captain Hook had the nerve to chuckle at her discomfort, as he reached and took back the drink. He turned the bottle so he could place his lips right where she had hers before he took a drink. It was a small but intimate act that sent shivers down her spine. She watched him swallow. His Adam's apple bobbed and Emma's insides tightened in response. She really did need to get a hold on herself.

"No, Lady Bell, it is definitely not lighter fluid."

Emma wasn't sure if it was even possible but he stepped closer. If Emma breathed any heavier, her nipples would brush against his leather coat. Oddly, Emma felt compelled to take a deep breath just to try out her theory.

The pirate leaned in and breathed in her ear, "You don't know how much you've been missed, Miss Swan."

"By you?" she accused. She sucked in her breath. The cool metal of his jacket pressed her arm.

"Every day."

"Surely not." Emma looked down. His good arm brushed against her arm in a caress. "I'm sure Milah kept you occupied most days, Mr. Jones."

At that, Captain Hook took a couple of stumbling steps back. "How?"

"The tattoo." Emma reached for his hand and brushed back his sleeve, revealing the heart-shaped ink she had spotted with Milah's name.

Killian quickly tucked his sleeve back down with his hooked hand. He glanced around almost in an attempt to make sure no one else noticed. Emma looked around as well. No one seemed to take any notice of the two Neverland characters conversing.

"So, now that you now who I am, what do you plan to do with that knowledge?" Killian looked at her closely, uncertainty visible in his stance.

"Nothing. Absolutely, nothing." Emma turned and was about to leave when he turned her back. "What? It isn't like we aren't two of the most unwanted people in Storybrooke."

"Speak for yourself, Swan. I am sure a lot of people want me." He gave her a cheeky grin. "Some for my head, some for ransom and quite a few for my body."

Emma scoffed. Apparently, since her last run in with Killian he grew egotistical. "Wow. Your arrogance has certainly gotten stronger through the years."

Emma placed her hands at her waist and glared at the man who had haunted her high school dreams for years. He was the man she compared most guys to when she met them. Well, except for Neal. Neal had been special. She thought she loved him, until she realized that it was one-sided and she was just a pawn to be used for him to escape.

Killian stepped forward, once again invading the personal space she liked to keep. He arched his eyebrow. "So, which are you?"

"What am I, what?"

"Do you want my head, my body or the money for both?"

Emma's heart screamed the second option. However, she was about to say the latter, she was a bail bonds person after all, when someone stumbled into her from behind. The person fell against her and pushed her into Killian's chest. He grabbed her tightly against him, his gaze capturing hers. "Glad you don't stand on ceremony, Swan. I appreciate a woman who takes what she wants."

She pushed against him. His lips were way too close for comfort. And the feel of his chest from his unbuttoned shirt left her wanting to see more. She pulled away, but realized his artificial appendage was tangled in the waistband of her skirt. "Could you please remove your hook?"

"I could," he teased, which caused her to narrow her eyes. "Oh, you mean now?"

The innocent look he sent her way made her want to laugh, but at the same time her blood boiled. How could one man be this frustrating?

"I always thought Tinkerbelle had a thing for Peter Pan, but, apparently, she was after Captain Hook all along." Emma face flamed at the comment. She looked over Killian's shoulder and saw a group of teenagers laughing at them.

It was then she felt the tug at her waist. Then she heard a decisive snap before her skin began to slip down her legs. She grabbed for it and so did Killian. Their heads banged together, but Emma managed to get a hold on it and drag it up.

"Shit. Shit. Shit."

"Sorry, Swan. Here take this." Killian quickly tugged off his coat one-handed.

"Now you're being a gentleman?"

He flipped the coat around her shoulders and struggled to do the metal clasps with his one hand. "Your dress is falling apart and I am always a gentleman."

She brushed his fingers away. "Let me do it."

As she buttoned, her skirt once again slipped down. She finished and reached down to pick up the tattered fabric off the floor, stuffing it into one of the coat pockets. "I should go."

"My coat…"

"Will be returned. Just tell me where."

"Oh!" Killian raised his eyebrow. "This was just a clever play to see me again."

Killian, the space invader, crowded her. He leaned down and whispered in her ear. "I like how you think, Swan."

"For God's sake." Emma sighed. "I didn't plan on you destroying my costume just so I could see you again, Jones. Just tell me where to send your stupid coat, so I can go home and actually put on some clothes."

He winked at her. The arrogant ass actually winked at her. "Or, I could show you where and you can forgo clothes altogether," he quipped.

Emma leaned into him, making sure every inch other their bodies touched from hip to chest. She leaned in and captured his ear in her teeth. She heard his breath catch, as she whispered, "As much as that line may work with eighty percent of women here, I think I'll pass."

"But what a pleasure it would be." His voice sounded husky and full of promise. His good arm snaking into his coat and wrapped around her waist, pulling her tighter. She felt his arousal. Emma felt a shiver pass over her body.

She felt his lips graze her own ear, as he tongue swiped at it. His hooked hand gently pushed her hair behind her shoulder. She felt herself lean further into him, as his lips trailed their way down her neck, his cheek nudging aside the lapels of his coat to get better access. She heard a groan and realized it was her own.

"Come home with me."

She barely heard the request, as blood rushed through her head making her oblivious to anything but the sensations he was causing. Her own mouth was nibbling its way across his flesh.

"I can't," she breathed. She gave herself a mental shake and removed her lips from his neck. This time she pleaded to both him and herself. "I can't."

Killian must have heard the desperation in her voice, it had been obvious even to her own ears. He pulled back from her, just enough for him to be able to look her in the eyes. His good hand reached up and brushed through her hair. He guided face to his own. Their noses brushed together. Their eyes never broke apart. "Tomorrow. Granny's. I'm in Room 2."

"When?" _Why did she still sound so breathless_?

He leaned back and released her. His grin spread across his face in a rendition of the Cheshire Cat. Okay, she needed to stop listening to Henry and his stories, almost ever point of reference she used lately involved a fairy tale.

"Whenever you get there, I'll be waiting." He grasped her again and tugged her in for a kiss that shattered every logical thought in her brain. Then he slowly let he go, so she could retain her balance.

"Tomorrow, then." He gave her a side grin and turned. He made his way through the crowd, disappearing from sight.

Emma was still quivering from the whole experience a few minutes later when Mary-Margaret approached. "Emma, you okay?"  
>"Yeah, of course." Emma turned to her friend and gave her a smile.<p>

"You sure?" Mary-Margaret gave her a once over glance.

"Why wouldn't I be?" Emma shrugged and tried to play down the whole experience with Killian in her mind.

"Well, you weren't wearing a leather trench the last time I saw you, for one."

"Oh!" Emma started. "No! No, everything is fine. Well, not really. My dress ripped. "

Emma pulled out the destroyed fabric from the pocket and showed it to Mary-Margaret. "It's pretty much ruined. Guess Ruby won't get her deposit back on this one, huh?"

"No, I guess not." Mary-Margaret gave a brief chuckle. "So, I guess Graham saw what happened and gave you his coat?"

"Graham?" Emma was confused. What did the sheriff have to do with the coat she was wearing? Then she remembered he was to have dressed as Captain Hook as well. Though from what she recalled of the fairy tale he usually had a red coat.

"Of course, Graham." Mary-Margaret waved at the trench she was wearing. "That is who you got it from, right? It looks just like the one he bought for his costume. He dragged me along when he purchased it."

"Sure, Graham." Emma nodded. This were just becoming curiouser and curiouser. "You know, Mary-Margaret, I really would just like to get back home and jump into some sweats. Do you mind?"

"No, of course not." Mary-Margaret reached into the blue pouch she was using as a purse and handed over her keys. "Here."

"Thanks, Mary-Margaret."

Mary-Margaret gave her a soft smile. "See you later. Don't wait up."

Emma who was about to leave, turned back to her friend. "Oh?"

Mary-Margaret blushed. "I might just have a date with a prince later. Shh!"

Emma laughed. "My lips are forever sealed."

The two women hugged. "Just promise you won't do anything I wouldn't do."

Mary-Margaret blushed harder. "Why does that open up so many more doors than I would have had myself."

Emma lightly punched her friend in the arm, before she turned and left to head back to their apartment.


	10. Chapter 10

**Disclosure: **I do not own any of the characters contained in this story.

**Chapter 10:**

**11 years before:**

Emma's head ached. This was her first hangover ever and it sucked. Why the hell did Ruby convince them to drink on a Sunday night? Emma and Ruby had spent the whole weekend at Mary-Margaret's house. Then last night Mary-Margaret's father was called out on town business and told the girls he was going to crash at the apartment at city hall because he probably wouldn't be done until late and didn't want to wake them up before a school day.

Instead they stayed up late. Ruby had gone over to Granny's to fetch their dinner and returned not only with dinner buy a couple bottle of liquor. So, what would have been just a normal sleepover, ended up being a festival of three girls drinking hard liquor and talking about boys. Ruby had a huge crush on a medical intern. His name was Victor Whale, a former Storybrooke citizen, who had returned after finishing medical school. Mary-Margaret lamented about her crush on David Nolan, who had yet to ask her out, but showed interest, despite almost constantly being in the presence of Mr. Midas' daughter, Katheryn. And when Emma was questioned about her crush, she denied having one. Even liquor couldn't untie her tongue that much.

"Oh! I know she has a thing for Graham, and that's why she isn't saying," Ruby informed Mary-Margaret before taking another Jello shot.

Emma had glared at her, hands on her hips, staring down at her friend reclined on the couch. "I do not have a thing for Graham. Heck, the way you always bring him up, I almost think that you do."

Ruby blushed. She was so red, Emma felt bad for her.

Mary-Margaret jumped up off the couch next to Ruby and pointed at her. "You do. You so have a thing for Graham."

"Don't say anything," Ruby pleaded.

When they assured her that they would keep her secret, Ruby insisted on another round of Jello shots. Emma guessed that was how Ruby would make sure that they didn't talk. She could accuse them of being too drunk to remember correctly.

"Girls, school is in twenty minutes. If you don't leave now, you'll be late," Emma heard Johanna call from the other side of Mary-Margaret's bedroom door. _Damn_. Mr. Blanchard must have sent Johanna over to make sure that they got to school.

Emma shook Mary-Margaret who was asleep next to her. "We have to get up. Johanna is here to make sure we go."

Mary-Margaret blinked at her like a sleepy owl. Emma heard Ruby groan from the floor where she had built a bed of blankets. "Rubs, we have to go. School's about to start."

"I don't wanna."

Emma looked down at the girl. She rubbed her face with her hands. It was just going to be one of those days. Emma swung her feet off the bed and stepped over the prostrate Ruby and went to the chair that held her uniform. She stripped down and quickly donned it, before she gently kicked Ruby in the side and leaned over to push Mary-Margaret off the bed.

"C'mon, girls. We have to leave."

Emma walked over to Mary-Margaret's vanity and quickly threw her long blond hair into a ponytail and applied some lip gloss. It was the best she could do in the short time that they had. She wished she had the time to brush her teeth, but if she did she wouldn't make it to homeroom and she couldn't afford to be late one more day this year.

Emma turned to the other girls getting dressed.

"I have to go or I'm going to be late. If I am, I will get detention for the week and Johanna will never let me out of the house again." Emma waved and grabbed her backpack before she rushed out the door.

With seconds to spare, she made it to her chair for homeroom. There was no way that Ruby and Mary-Margaret were going to make it, but then they were hardly ever late, so more than likely, they wouldn't be in too much trouble. But because she hadn't been able to get to her locker before homeroom, she would have to try to make the time between now and first class to get to it or she wouldn't have the books she needed for the first two periods. Only problem was that her locker was on the opposite side of the school from her homeroom and her first class. It so was not her day today.

Of course, her first class was Sister Astrid, so if she did end up late, it wasn't as bad as with some of the other teachers, but Emma really did not want to upset her. She was one of the nicest teachers Emma had. She had only a minute and a half to get there, but since her head hurt she tried not to slam her locker. She pushed her way around the other students hurrying to class. She might just make it.

The bell rang as she was two classroom's away from her destination. Her luck could not get any worse today. Then she saw him, coming from the back doors of the school. Killian slinked carefully through the wooden doors. He was limping. His jeans were torn and his leather jacket and shirt were covered in mud and leaves. Sunglasses covered his eyes, despite the cloudy day outside.

Emma rushed to him, desperate to help. Being late for class the last thing on her mind, she dropped her backpack and grabbed his arm as he almost toppled over.

"What happened?" Emma gently removed his sunglasses from his face, revealing the purple bruise that was forming over his left eye.

"Gold," he whispered, through his cracked and bleeding lips. It sounded painful to hear him speak.

Emma took his backpack from him and grabbed her own, throwing both over her shoulder. Then she grabbed his right arm and lead him to the bathrooms. Her eyes darted between the two doors. _Boys or Girls_? Making a fast decision, she led him into the men's room where she felt he would be more comfortable. She looked around quickly and noticed no one inside and she breathed a sigh of relief.

"How? Why?" Emma grabbed a bunch of paper towels after she helped him lean against the wall near the sinks. She wet them down with warm water and carried them back to him.

"Milah."

He was sliding down the wall, so she helped him get down on the floor. She handed him the wet towels and searched through her bag for her bottle of water. Once she had it she cracked open the lid and offered it to him. He hesitantly drank, as she took the wet towels back and dabbed at his face. Not only were his lips cracked and bruised he had a laceration over his left eye that was swelling quickly.

"He was touching Milah. He kissed her."

"Oh." The word fell out of Emma's mouth before she could hold it in. She didn't want him to think that she was taking this lightly. No matter how much she hated Milah, Killian did not deserve this.

"I don't know what happened, but I just lost it. I ran over, separated the two of them, and punched him. Then he almost bloody well killed me." He turned his battered face toward her. She wasn't sure if he was crying or his eyes were watery from the injuries, but she refused to say anything.

No one deserved this. She had seen it too many times in her life, staying with different foster families. Her own tears began to slip down her face. She swiped them away. She could feel bad later, right now Killian needed her.

"Don't move. I'm going to go get some help."

He nodded, but it appeared to be another painful gesture. She tried her best to give him a reassuring smile, but she knew she missed by a mile. Emma left and ran the whole way to Mother Superior's office. She had to be able to help Killian, more than Emma could, and she did. Mother Superior, herself, took Killian to the emergency room. She assured Emma the next morning that she did the right thing and that she was given leniency for her missed classes because she helped a fellow student.

It was a relief. One less things she had to worry about. However, if that was the only time that she had to help Killian, it might have worried her less. Instead, she had heard from Graham after Christmas break, that he had gone by and found Killian beaten to a pulp. Once again, Killian had ended up in the emergency room, fingers and nose broken. After Valentine's Day, he stumbled into school just an hour before the last class ended, his clothes torn to shreds. He already had been going around with a cast on his leg from a previous altercation with Gold, and now he cradled a newly broken arm.

Emma, who had seen Mary-Margaret with a scarf, ran to her friend to borrow it before she returned to Killian's side to tie it up. She guided him back to his car. She had been practicing how to drive with Johanna but had yet to get her driver's permit. That did not stop her from getting Killian to the emergency room on her own. His eyes were closed the whole time, not caring about his car, in obvious pain.

She stayed there until Graham and his parents arrived a couple hours later. Graham led her out of the hospital waiting room and outside, while his parents completed the paperwork for Killian's release.

"What's going on between you and Killian?" Graham accused. He had pulled her off to the side of the hospital doors and turned her to him.

Emma stared up her friend. "Nothing. He was hurt and I was trying to help."

"His own girlfriend doesn't help when this happens, Emma. So, I ask you again, what's going on?" He crossed his arms over his chest, in his most intimidating pose. He almost sounded jealous.

Emma pushed her finger into his chest and caused him to back away from her. "You are not my father, nor my boyfriend, Graham. I don't have to answer to you. And the fact that I at least have some decency to help someone who is hurt should be in my favor not held against me. Some friend you are."

Graham stood there shocked. "Well, you make it damn hard to be anything more than your friend. You have those walls that you erect all around you, shutting out everyone who might give a crap about you."

"Well, that's what I want most right now. A friend. And so does Killian. So, if you want to do something for me, watch over him so I don't have to, because my life sucks. It sucks eggs. And I have no clue how long I will be around."

Emma began to pace. This sucked. She hated asking others for help. But Killian needed someone to be there for him. Her life was one big question mark. Who was to say how long she would be with Johanna, in Storybrooke. So, she had to rely on Graham to assist her in making sure that Gold wasn't going to murder Killian while her back was turned.

Graham reached out and stopped her. He gazed down and gave her a smile. "Even if he won't let me, I'll be sure he is okay. For you." 


	11. Chapter 11

**A/N: **Sorry for whatever confusion the previous chapters may have caused. I hope with the updates I added that it helps. Thank you for continuing on this journey with me. I hope all of you enjoy it. *ClaraFrench thank you for the review. I appreciate your catch. I fixed it, though it is late. J

**Disclaimer: **I own none of the characters in this story.

**Chapter 11:**

The light that shifted through the window of the loft woke Emma. Her alarm had yet to go off, as it wasn't quite seven thirty in the morning. Emma sat up and brushed her hair out of her face. She might as well get up and start her day. She reached for her glasses, slid them on and stretched.

Emma padded over to the vanity crammed inside her little space, intending to grab her makeup bag so she could get ready. Instead, she was confronted by the leather trench coat draped across the bench. She had tossed and turned all night due to that damn jacket. Emma just had Mary-Margaret's voice saying over and over again that it was Graham's. Then Graham's voice would chime in to say that he saw Killian before he ran out of town after Milah's death. She would remember Killian's breath brushing her ear in a lover's caress.

As if Storybrooke hadn't caused her enough conflicting emotions over the years, now she had to deal with this too. After a trip to the bathroom, Emma made her way down to the kitchen to start the kettle for some hot chocolate. She descended the stairs and noticed Mary-Margaret still asleep. Luckily, it was Saturday, or else Mary-Margaret would have been late for school. She had stumbled into the apartment around three am, hours after the party ended. Emma knew that whatever Mary-Margaret did would have consequences. David was still married, even if he was still trying to determine how to end things with his wife. Emma hoped her friend wouldn't come out of this relationship heart broken against love, but if things continued down the path they were headed it didn't look good.

Hearing her phone vibrate, Emma lunged to retrieve it, but almost knocked it off the counter. She snuck outside the apartment before she answered. "Hello."

"Emma. It's me Henry."

"What's up, kid?" Emma leaned against the wall, happy to finally be talking to him. Since she had brought him back to town she had only heard from him a handful of times. He seemed content to just know she was close by.

"You want to have breakfast with me before school?"

"Sure, but it's Saturday. Why are you going to school?" Emma heard the kettle begin to whistle and rushes back inside, sure that the sound was going to wake Mary-Margaret.

"I have a project with some people from class. The teacher said we could meet this morning to complete it."

"Well, okay, kid. I guess I'll be there soon."

"Great! Meet me at Granny's in fifteen minutes." Henry hung up, so Emma did the same. She only had ten minutes to jump in the shower and get ready, before she had to head over or else she would be late.

As she zipped up her boots, her eyes caught hold of the black leather jacket again. She might as well take it with her now since she was going to Granny's anyway. After she met with Henry, she could go and find Killian to talk.

"So, kid what's going on?" Emma asked as she slid into the booth across from Henry.

"I haven't seen you in about two weeks. I thought we could just share some breakfast and talk." He shrugged and shoved a huge bite of pancakes into his mouth.

"I was actually looking for you last night at the dance, but I didn't feel like another public argument with your mother." Emma looked up as Ruby approached the table with a mug.

"Hey, Emma. Here's your cocoa." She set it before Emma and gave her a smile before she walked away to help another customer.

"But…" Emma tried to let Ruby know she hadn't ordered it. However, since she never had a chance to drink one at home she was grateful.

"I thought you'd like it. It's my favorite, too. Extra cinnamon," Henry told her around another bite of pancakes.

"You don't even know how much I need this right now." Emma took a large sip of the hot beverage. She had to lick her upper lip to remove the whip cream that settled there.

"So, what's with the coat?"

"What coat?" Emma looked up from scraping a finger across the top of her cocoa, so she could lick the whipped cream.

She watched Henry's eyes roll, ensuring her that he was not buying her whole attitude of playing it off. He pointed to it. "The big, black leather one that is sitting right next to you."

Emma grabbed it and briefly showed it to him before she returned it to the place beside her. "This one? I have to return it. My dress ripped last night and Graham let me borrow it," she lied.

"But I thought Dr. Whale told Graham to stay home last night. Maybe mom had it wrong." Henry shrugged again and then ate the last bite from his stack of pancakes. "Sorry, I need to run, school's about to start."

Henry grabbed his backpack. Emma stood up and gave him a quick hug. "See you later, kid."

Emma watched him go. She still hadn't quite wrapped her mind around the fact that this half-grown child was hers. Yet, she knew with certainty that she would do all within her power to protect him. He was the only family she could ever claim was hers.

Plopping back down in the booth to finish her cocoa, Emma recalled her childhood. She had always dreamed of one day meeting her parents. She imagined every sob story she ever heard, whether from other kids in the system or from television, as an excuse as to why they couldn't keep her. It never seemed to matter because they never showed up.

There was one boy that she lived with that had told her that she had it easy. That Emma could imagine her parents whatever way she wanted. He, on the other hand, always knew he wasn't loved or wanted by his own. He had been abused by his own parents for years before one day leaving the state for a new job and leaving him chained behind in their old apartment, cold and starving for three weeks before the landlord found him.

Emma hugged herself just thinking of Charlie and how hard he had it. He had been the one to protect her from her foster father and he was the one that reported him to the authorities so that no one else suffered from his abuse again. That had been when Emma was eight and she never forgot that kid and his strength to stand up for others no matter the cost to himself.

Not wanting to dwell on such sad thoughts, Emma stood and grabbed the jacket. She knew she should go and confront Killian with the garment and demand an actual answer as to why he was at the party, but her feet led her back outside. She glanced back again, not sure if she was making the right decision, but let herself be convinced that she needed to find out from Graham was going on before she met with Killian again.

Graham stumbled to his front door. He was feeling better this morning than the night before, but not enough for company. He half suspected that Killian would be on the other side to return the costume he borrowed or even Regina checking up on him, but not Emma. Especially not Emma holding part of the costume Killian borrowed.

"Can I come in?" She smiled at him.

"Of course." His voice sounded raw and shaky even to his own ears. He needed a warm cup of tea with honey to feel human again.

She walked in and he closed the door behind her. He followed her the short distance to his living area, catching himself from falling with the back of the couch. He gestured to it. "Please sit. Tea?"

"No, thanks." She perched on the couch and settled the jacket on the coffee table.

Graham began to walk to the kitchen and felt sweat pop out on his forehead. The exertion was taking a toll on him. He really should not have gotten out of bed.

Emma leaped up. "Graham, sit down."

She walked around and led him over to the spot she recently vacated. "Sit. I'll make the tea."

"Thanks," he muttered as she helped him settle. The room was beginning to spin, just when he was thinking that this pneumonia was finally releasing him from its grip. He rested his feet up onto the coffee table and leaned back and closed his eyes.

"Um, Graham? Where is the tea?"

"The cabinet by the fridge. Mugs are above the microwave." He heard Emma fiddling around his kitchen. Even if it had been Regina at his door, he doubted she would have taken care of him quite as well as Emma was. Not that Emma was doing much, but just knowing someone was there and able to help him when he was sick made him feel that much better.

His and Regina's relationship was complicated enough, but now with Emma back in town and old feelings resurfacing Graham was in a way glad the cold was keeping him in a place where he could sort out whatever feelings he had for both women. Both cases, he knew his feelings tended to me more one-sided. Though with Regina, he was thinking that she was just a means to an end. To which end, though, he was still unsure.

As for Emma, she had never really noticed Graham as more than a friend and her eyes had been firmly trained on Killian Jones, though she would deny it with her last dying breath. And since she came back to town, she seemed to avoid him more than not. He wasn't exactly sure of her reasoning, but since he started seeing Regina, he had become person non grata with most of his friends.

He forced his eyes open as he heard Emma pad across the floor back to where he was sitting. She set a tray on the table and helped him sit up before she handed it to him. "I hope Earl Grey is fine. It was the first one I found. And I brought some honey and sugar over. I wasn't sure if you wanted any."

"Honey," he croaked. She took the warm mug back from him and mixed some in before she handed it back. "Thank you."

"You're welcome." Emma sat down next to him on the couch. "I would ask you how you feel, but you look like death warmed over."

Graham took a sip of the steaming liquid. "Feel like it, too."

The tea felt like nirvana on his dry, cracked throat as he sipped again. He watched her over the mug, unsure as to why she was really here. Unless it was about the coat and Killian. _What exactly happened last night_?

"Who's in charge of the station while you're sick? Not to pry, but you can't exactly be effective at your job when you can't even stand."

Graham cradled the mug, enjoying the warmth it was spreading through him. "You applying? I could use a good deputy," he joked.

"I still don't even know if I'm sticking around. Plus, I don't think Regina would be too thrilled."

Graham turned his aching body toward her. "It's not Regina's decision. I have extra money in the budget. You have to be better than Sidney Glass."

"The newspaper reporter?" Her face mirrored her confusion.

"He is the acting sheriff whenever something happens and I can't handle the office."

She seemed to take this information in, like she was actually considering it. "No nights?"

He gave her a slight smile, all he could manage in his weakened state. Maybe, just maybe, if Emma worked for him, he might actually have a chance to for her to see him as more than just a friend. He was warming up to the idea himself. "No nights. I promise."

"Alright, then, I'll take the job." She reached out and shook his hand. "But, I will let you know in advance should anything happen and I decide to leave town again."

"Agreed." Graham squeezed the hand that still held his. "There is a uniform at the office you can use. The badge is there too in my desk. Can you start today?"

Emma nodded. "You bet, boss."

"Great. Well, deputy, your first order of business is to help me back to bed. I would be forever grateful." Graham released her hand and set his mug down. He attempted to stand but began to sway.

"Wow. New job and already the boss is asking for favors," she teased as she helped him up and back to his room.

He no sooner laid down and relaxed against the pillows than sleep overtook him.

Emma let herself out of Graham's apartment, locking the door behind her. It was only then that she remembered that she had left the coat Killian borrowed on Graham's table. She also never got the keys to the sheriff's station.

She hated to knock on the door and awake Graham when the thing he needed most was rest. She would have to ask him about the coat the next time she saw him. And as for the keys, well it looked like she would have to take a trip over to the newspaper office to talk to Sidney Glass.


	12. Chapter 12

**A/N: **Thank you to my followers, whether you started from the beginning or just came on board. I hope each one of you are enjoying it.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters in this story.

**Chapter 12:**

**11 years ago**

Mary-Margaret was driving Emma crazy. If Emma heard one more time about manicures, pedicures or corsages, she was seriously going to start screaming. Their junior prom was two weeks away. Ruby was going with Graham and Mary-Margaret was attending with Jefferson, a senior. Emma hadn't been asked and since she couldn't dance, she convinced herself she wouldn't miss anything. If Mary-Margaret would just stop talking about it.

"But, you have to go to prom," Mary-Margaret was telling her for what seemed like the hundredth time just today alone. "It's prom. A right of passage for every high school girl."

"I don't have a date. And it wouldn't be any fun being the fifth wheel," Emma insisted as she sat outside the dressing room where Mary-Margaret and Ruby were trying on prom dresses.

"So get a date. I had to ask Graham," Ruby said as she stepped out. She wore a skin tight red floor length dress with a slit almost to her hip on the right side. Emma whistled.

"I'm surprised you had to ask anyone at all," Mary-Margaret quipped, exiting the other room. She wore a dress covered from hip to floor in white feathers.

Emma had to hide her laugh. "You look like a giant swan come to life. Shouldn't that be saved for Halloween?"

"Hey." Mary-Margaret seemed truly offended. "I love this dress. I can see me wearing this to my wedding," she protested while she preened by the three-way mirror.

"I'd wait for then. It's a little much for prom." Ruby looked Mary-Margaret over with a critical eye. "Plus, if Emma says you look like a giant swan, just think of the comments Milah and her gang will lay at your feet."

Mary-Margaret sighed and turned from the mirror. "But I love this dress."

"No," Ruby and Emma said in unison.

"Fine." Mary-Margaret threw her hands up in the air in defeat and turned back to the dressing room. "I'll try the purple one on."

Ruby moved to the mirror that Mary-Margaret vacated and started pulling her hair into different styles. "You know she's just upset because David wouldn't go to prom with her."

Mary-Margaret popped her head out of the dressing room. "I heard that. And so what if David doesn't want to go with me? It isn't like I don't have a date."

Ruby glared at Mary-Margaret and nodded dramatically toward Emma.

"Sorry, Emma," Mary-Margaret apologized giving her a smile and then went back inside.

"It's okay. I'm fine. I don't mind not going to prom," Emma tried to convince everyone, including herself. "It's not like this is the only prom I will have to go to. There is always next year."

Mary-Margaret came out again, as Ruby heading back to her own room. The strapless purple gown looked amazing on her, with it's full skirt she looked like a fairytale princess come to life. "There you go, Emma. The bright side is always the way to look at things. One must always have hope. And who knows, you might still be asked to prom yet."

"Doubt it, but one can always hope."

The girls left Modern Fashion and headed toward Granny's. Mary-Margaret had purchased the purple gown and Ruby had ended up with an amazingly simple black sheath dress that made her legs look longer than they even were. They wanted to drop the dresses off before they headed to the local ice cream shop. For the beginning of May, it was awfully hot. A heat wave had come in and it was holding on with both hands, refusing the leave the Maine shoreline.

When they reached Granny's, Mary-Margaret and Ruby headed inside. Emma decided to wait outside the patio for them. She leaned against the fence when she heard her name and turned toward gate to the patio.

"You coming inside, Swan?" August Booth stood there holding it open.

Emma shook her head. "Nope. Waiting for Ruby and Mary-Margaret."

August just stood there. He looked her over and it made her nervous. She never had much interaction with the senior football player. He hung around mostly jocks and she hardly ever saw him talk to anyone outside of school. Plus, there was always something about the guy that whenever he looked at you. It made Emma want to second-guess herself or check to see if her hair or something else was out of place.

"You have a date for the prom?" he asked.

"No. Wasn't planning on going." Emma wondered why he asked. It wasn't like he ever showed interest in her before. Heck, she was surprised the guy even knew her name.

"By any chance, would you want to go with me?"

Emma swore her chin dropped and her mouth was open. She had no idea how to respond to him. Even if she could dance, and not embarrass herself, she wasn't sure Johanna would be willing to spend the money for a dress. Emma struggled to form an answer, not even knowing what might come out, when Mary-Margaret and Ruby came out of the door in a flurry of activity.

August turned and watched them approach, before facing her again. He walked over and whispered in her ear. "Think about it and get back to me."

Graham saw the girls walk toward him, lost in conversation. He had been in town with his dad. They had to get supplies for the farm where they raised wolves. He had been on his way to Granny's for lunch when he had spotted Mary-Margaret, Ruby and Emma.

"Graham!" Emma called.

He smiled at her and she rushed over and grabbed his arm. "Rescue me, please," she whispered. "If I hear one more detail about prom, I don't know what I may do."

He gave her a conspiratorial wink and turned to Mary-Margaret and Ruby. "Sorry, ladies, I have to drag Emma away. She promised to study with me."

"Really? Why didn't you say so?" Ruby asked her.

Graham dropped his arm over Emma's shoulders. He wished he had the right to be this possessive over her. His crush was one that he was afraid to mention to any one of his group, afraid that it might break them up. He had intended to ask Emma to prom when Ruby cornered him demanding he take her. Since they practically grew up together, he had to be a gentleman and agree to her request, despite his heart's desire.

Mary-Margaret looked between the two of them and smiled. He suspected that Mary-Margaret knew that Emma was the one he had intended to ask to prom. "Of course. Emma, you should have said something."

Emma had the grace to look sheepish. "I forgot until I saw Graham. Sorry, I'll catch up with you later."

Graham and Emma watched the two girls walk off and enter the ice cream shop. Emma shrugged his arm off and stepped back.

"Thanks for the rescue, Graham."

His arm hung limp at his side, already missing the comfort of having Emma next to him. He gave her a half-hearted, lopsided grin. "No problem."

She came forward and leaned up on her toes, pecking him on the cheek. Graham felt himself blush at the contact. How he wanted to just admit he had feelings for her, but he was too unsure of how she felt. He would rather not date Emma if it still meant she would be around, then ask her out and have her run out of his life, maybe for good.

"So, I was about to have some lunch. Want to get a burger with me?" Okay, that was the best he was going to get. A friendship date.

"I was going to get ice cream with the girls until my head felt it was going to explode, but I guess I can get a sundae at Granny's while you eat." She smiled up at him and he felt a little better.

They walked side by side down the sidewalk. Graham was glad for these little moments when he might not have everything he wanted, but life allowed him to have a small taste. And when they were in Granny's and Emma was laughing at his stupid jokes, he honestly believed life couldn't get any better. Even Killian, sitting a couple booths back with Milah, did not look as happy as he felt.

"Killian. Killian, I'm talking to you." Milah snapped her fingers in front of his nose.

Killian shook himself out of his musings. For some reason, seeing Emma laughing with Graham a few booths over made a tiny part of him jealous and he couldn't conceive why. Here he was with the woman he loved with every inch of his heart and he found himself more interested in what Emma Swan was doing.

Sure, she was there for him almost every time he had a run-in with Mr. Gold. She was a feisty one who threatened to go after the man when she found out he had been hurt over Christmas break. Last night, his dreams even lead him down the path of him taking her to prom instead of Milah. She had looked beautiful in black knee length dress. Her hair sparkled under the dim lights. Her green eyes stared longingly into his before he grasped her by the back of her head and drew her mouth to his. As far as teenage wet dreams went it wasn't much of one, but it worked its magic all the same.

"Killian!"

"Sorry, love. Lost in thought," he apologized and reached across the table for her hand. He caressed the back and drew it to his lips.

"So, do you have your tux ready or do you still need to do alterations?"

Killian wondered if this was something Emma would be worried about if she was in Milah's place. He doubted it. She seemed more likely to be content with his attention. "The tux is complete, lass. It hangs in my closet presently."

"Great. And you ordered my corsage?" She seemed to be going down some mental checklist.

He sighed, so much for having a relaxing lunch before he had work his Saturday night shift. "Yes. I ordered the flowers. I arranged for the limo to pick all of us up and I had my shoes polished. Is that all or was there more?"

He hated to sound irritated, but honestly this was the third time this week she had to ask him about arrangements. He knew the drill. She made sure after he had missed buying her a corsage last year, to give him the fifth degree over what was required of an escort to the prom.

"Well, that's all for now. I'll check back with you next week, to make sure that we are all synchronized with times and such." Milah rose from the booth and leaned over and kissed him. "Try not to work too hard tonight. I love you."

"I love you too, lass." He looked up at her and smiled. Months ago, he would have risen and taken her in his arms and kissed her like he would never see her again, but since her involvement with Mr. Gold, he had begun to doubt her sincerity.

She left and his eyes found Emma's blond hair again. It swayed in her mirth over whatever Humbert had told her. Killian rose and collected the dishes he and Milah had and brought them to the back. Before he went in though he turned to look at Emma once more. Her eyes caught his over Graham's shoulder. She gave him a smile and a slight nod of her head, not enough for Humbert to notice, but enough to acknowledge him. Killian grinned back. His day might not have started well, but now he could at least look forward to an evening filled with thoughts of Emma and her twinkling green eyes.


	13. Chapter 13

**A/N: **I apologize for the update taking so long. With Halloween around, there are a lot of activities for my children so we have been taking advantage of them while they are still young enough to enjoy them. Thank you so much for continuing with my story.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the characters in this story.

**Chapter 13:**

Emma had been called out of the police station on a disturbance call down by the docks not a week after she started. Graham had just returned to work earlier in the day and after his bout with the flu, Emma was reluctant to send him out into the cold.

She searched around some of the fishing boats where Leroy reported seeing some kids messing around. It didn't appear like there was any damage, so, apparently, they were just hanging around causing chaos before they ran off. Emma was about to leave and return to the station when she heard something fall and crash into the floor inside the nearest boat. Withdrawing her weapon, she carefully stepped aboard.

After looking around and proceeding down below, she saw some fishing equipment had fallen over. She chalked it up to the steady waves lapping against the hull, so she holstered her gun and went above deck. It was there she discovered Henry crouching against one side.

"Henry," Emma called out to him.

The boy looked startled, but then smiled once he saw it was her. She walked over and sat next to him.

"What are you doing here, kid? This is trespassing."

"Sorry. It's just some kids from school were determined to get my book from me." Henry held up his old leather bound storybook. "So, I hid here."

She looked at him quizzically. "Why would they want your book?"

"They don't necessarily want the book." He held it against his chest. "It's just I take it everywhere and a couple of the boys from school bully me about it."

Emma stared at the tome cradled to his chest and felt sorry for him. She knew what it was like growing up tormented by bullies.

"Mary-Margaret gave it to me. She told me once that fairy tales give you the hope that everything will get better."

"That definitely sounds like something Mary-Margaret would say," Emma agreed. "And bullies suck. I dealt with my fair share of them in school and in the foster system." Emma reached her arm out and hugged Henry toward her. "Let's just say being the new kid all of the time did not always go over well."

"You always moved around?" Henry looked up at her, relaxing his grip on his book and leaning into her hold.

"All of the time. I hardly stayed with a family for very long and the few times that I was somewhere long enough to know people, I was usually living at one of the group homes. And let me tell you, that is bully central. Most of the worst kids lived there, as they were not able to be placed in foster homes." Emma fiddled with her circle necklace. She bought it shortly after getting out of jail. It reminded her that life circled back around. "At least you have somewhere to call home, kid. You're permanent part of Regina's family. You're very lucky. I dreamed of having someone to call my own."

"I was yours, once."

Emma felt a tear slip down her face at that. Yes, he had been hers. But, he was never meant to be part of her family, at least not back then. She had been too frightened by circumstance to think she could take care of herself, let alone a baby. And what did she know about being a family? She never had one.

"You're right. I am lucky. I not only have one mom, but two." Henry looked down at his book which he now had rested on his knees. "You wanna see it?"

Emma nodded. It felt nice to be trusted.

Henry handed it to her. She glanced through the pages. It did not seem like conventional fairytales. However, if it made Henry feel safe and secure in his world she would treasure it as much as he did.

Her phone beeped. She reached inside her leather coat and pulled it out. It was a text from Graham checking up on her. Emma noticed the time and stood up, handing the book back to Henry.

"You better get back home, kid. You're mom is going to start looking for you soon, if she isn't already." She watched him load up the book inside his backpack and stand up as well.

Emma felt the need to ruffle his hair and she gave into the feeling. This was the first time since she met him that she felt the bond that a mother and son might feel. Maybe, just maybe, she could find a way to become part of Henry's family. She always longed to be connected to someone. To know that no matter what happened that person would love you unconditionally. Neal made her feel like she might have found that, but he quickly proved he was just like everyone else, and that she was someone that you could leave behind without a second thought.

Killian waited at Granny's for three days, leaving the room only the second and third day for only a few hours to check on August and Smee at the hideout by the docks. By the fourth day, he resigned himself to the knowledge that Emma wasn't coming.

Disappointment welled up inside him, until Graham called. Emma, Graham assumed, had discovered that the jacket belonged to him and had left it at his apartment when she had come over to check up on him.

His Swan was more perceptive than he originally thought. With a smile on his face, Killian thanked Ruby for the room and handed over the key. She had kept his presence a secret even from Granny. He was beyond thankful for the friends he still had in this town even if they were far from the friendships he had established all these years ago growing up here. How the tides had changed in his life since Milah's death.

He had already lost his brother just a few month before Milah was killed. He had been with his brother on a mission to retrieve a weapon for the navy and secret it back to their military base, when the weapon leaked exposing Liam to the deadly chemical. Killian had been furious that they were put on such a dangerous mission without the knowledge of exactly what the weapon was capable of doing. He and his crew almost mutinied that day. If his sense of duty had been any less strong, he would have gladly walked away that day without a second thought. Instead, he led the crew to head back to port, where Killian handed over the reins of the ship his brother commanded to his superiors and demanded to be released from his post.

Within a month that consisted of long interrogations and nights filled with nightmares, he found himself discharged from the navy. Having no idea where to go and no home or family to go back to, Killian soon found himself on August's doorstep in Washington D.C., where he was led into his current career of being a systems hacker. Killian sold his abilites to security companies around the globe and worked up quite a network.

Until one day he received a letter from Milah, who begged him to return to Storybrooke. She had once promised to wait for him, but he knew she had not after her letters stopped arriving, shortly before Liam's death. Instead she had married Mr. Gold. Killian wasn't even sure why he went. After the abuse he went through at Gold's hands, he still found himself meeting with Milah behind her husband's back. Milah begged him to take her away. She told him she never wanted to marry Gold, but she felt so lost with Killian gone. So, Killian found himself renting a room at Granny's, as he put his career on hold.

It took two months, but he finally relented and agreed to take her anywhere she wanted to go. The day they were to leave was the day she died. Gold had discovered their plan. When Killian met with Milah, Gold shot her as she ran into his arms. If Killian didn't have luck on his side he might have died too, but his luck quickly ran out.

Gold and a few of his friends from the docks had trapped him. They ripped Milah away from him, tears battering his face with their fury. The flunkies held Killian as he fought the best he could. Gold took perverse pleasure in watching him strain against his captors. Killian heard a click and thought for sure he was about to be shot. Instead a rapier appeared from the cane that Mr. Gold used for his limp. The silver glinted in the bright sunlight streaming down the alleyway.

"Do you know what it is like to have something precious taken from you?" Gold approached slowly. "To know that no matter what you did, you would never fully possess it? It's like having an arm with no hand."

The dockhands wrestled Killian to the ground and they extended his left arm out from his side. Gold limped over and grinned down at Killian still trying to fight the men.

"Here let me show you." With that Gold swung down with his slim sharp blade and sliced Killian's hand off. It felt like hours, but was merely minutes for Killian's life to change.

The men let him go and laughed as they stood. Gold reached down and took possession of Killian's severed hand, while he withered in pain. Killian bit his tongue until it bled, as he tried to keep from screaming out, refusing to give Gold the satisfaction.

"If I ever see you back in this town, Mr. Jones, you will be missing more than just your hand," Mr. Gold said ominously as he waved the others away. He sheathed his bloody blade. "Do you understand what I am saying, Mr. Jones?"

Killian barely nodded, not even if he would survive the day with the loss of blood. Gold however seemed satisfied by his small gesture.

"Then our deal is struck. Have a nice day, Mr. Jones."

Gold leaned heavily on his cane and limped casually away from the bloody scene. Killian was practically blinded by the pain. He inched his way over to Milah's body. His head rested on her chest before he lost consciousness.

Killian was sure he was dead when Graham appeared, shaking him awake. While he was passed out Graham had wrapped his arm and tied it up in some sort of scarf.

"You need to get out of here." Graham helped him stand and propped him up against the wall of the alleyway.

Killian used the last of the strength he had to nod his head and remain upright. Graham walked around and investigated the scene. It was his job as deputy to determine the crime scene. Killian wasn't sure if he would find himself at the hospital or in jail by the time Graham was finished. Instead, Graham handed him some keys.

"Here. These are to my dad's pickup. It's parked around the corner."

Killian stared at him confused. "Why?"

"No time for that." Graham shoved the keys into his hand and pushed him in the direction of the vehicle. "Get across the town line and leave the truck. August will be there to pick you up."

"Thank you, Graham." Killian leaned in to hug the younger man, but had to be righted against the wall because he was so weak.

"I'm not doing it for you, mate. I made a promise to Liam. And well, to someone else. Consider the debt paid." Graham helped him down the alleyway. "This is as far as I can go."

Killian smiled at him and stumbled out of the alley, struggling against the blackness that wanted to swallow him whole. How he made it to the truck he did not know, but once he was there he used to stay upright. He opened the door and held himself steady. Driving would not be easy in his condition.

"Killian! Are you okay?" David Nolan called out to him as he approached from across the street.

"No, mate. But, somehow I need to get in this truck and drive out of town or else I'm a dead man." Killian tried to give the guy a jovial grin, but he was sure it ended up more of a slight grimace.

David watched him as Killian straightened. "I'm not kidding, Dave. I need to get out of here. Can you help me up?"

"I'll drive you then." David took the keys dangling from Killian's fingers.

"You shouldn't get mixed up in this, mate." Killian shoved back the pain, as David helped him onto the driver's seat.

"I'm heading out of town myself. I'll feel better if you at least let me follow you so you don't get any more injured." David stared him down until Killian relented and nodded his agreement. "Give me five minutes to get to my truck and I'll be right behind you."

Killian watched him walk away and started the truck. When David's truck was behind him, he moved forward. True to his word, Dave followed him the whole way to the town line. And though Killian fought tooth and nail to remain conscious, his reflexes were no where near what they needed to be. He swerved to avoid the oncoming deer just barely missing it, however David wasn't so lucky. His truck slammed into the beast and ran down the embankment near the Welcome to Storybrooke sign. It was then as Killian stopped and stared at the wreckage that was David's truck that the blackness finally welcomed him with open arms.


	14. Chapter 14

**A/N: **I apologize for the lateness of this update. Things have been pretty hectic over here. I hope to get back on track with updates. I apologize for the short chapter after you had to wait so long. Thank you to all of my followers.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters.

**Chapter 14:**

Emma found Mary-Margaret crying by the docks. She had pleaded sick shortly after English class, when news that Jefferson had been taken into custody for attacking a girl at their school. Emma couldn't blame her. Tomorrow was prom and now Mary-Margaret, after all her planning, didn't have a date. Nor would one wish to have Jefferson as one, since his fall off the deep end of sanity.

Emma smoothed Mary-Margaret's ebony locks back and caressed her back as she sat down and hugged her friend. "It'll be okay. It's not like prom is completely ruined."

"It might as well be," Mary-Margaret sobbed. "I have the dress and everything. There is no way I'll get a date by tomorrow night and if I show up without anyone, people will laugh and snicker behind my back. I'm sure they are doing it anyway."

"I'll go with you," Emma said without thinking. H_ow bad could it be_? "We'll go together."

Mary-Margaret pulled back and looked at her, eyes searching for reassurance. "You would do that for me?"

"Of course I would, you're my best friend." Emma grasped Mary-Margaret's hands and squeezed.

Mary-Margaret swiped at her tears with her shoulder, as though she didn't want Emma to let go of her. "But you don't even have a dress."

"I'm sure I'll figure something out." Emma smiled, but had no idea how she was going to pull off getting a dress for the next evening.

Johanna wiped the tears from her eyes as Emma entered the room. They weren't exactly hurting monetarily, but Johanna kept them on a tight budget, except for the first shopping trip for school clothes and now this. Johanna had dragged Emma out immediately after she told her foster mother about Mary-Margaret's predicament. They went into the next town and discovered the perfect dress at a consignment shop. Now Emma stood here amazed. In just over twenty-four hours she went from not going to the prom to having a "date", a ticket and a dress.

The gown was beautiful. Silver in color with sequin beadwork lining the bodice and around the waist. It had gauzy sleeves that hung off her shoulders, feathers peeking from the tops. It was gorgeous and something Emma never dreamed she would possess, let alone wear. Johanna let her borrow a simple gold chain to go with it, as her throat was bare after Johanna piled Emma's hair atop her head.

The knock at the door signaled Mary-Margaret's arrival. The mayor was driving the girls in lieu of the limo that Jefferson rented, which had been cancelled.

"You look amazing," Mary-Margaret cried out as she hugged Emma. "Thank you so much for coming with me. I don't think I could have faced the school all by myself."

"Let me get a picture of the two of you," Johanna called from behind them.

No sooner had the girls turned than the flash of the camera went off. Johanna took a dozen more pictures before she allowed the girls to leave. They walked out arm in arm giggling the whole way to Mr. Blanchard's car.

"I thought my princess was beautiful." Mr. Blanchard took Emma's hand and bowed over it. "You look just as stunning, Miss Swan, if you don't mind an old man saying so."

Emma blushed. "Thank you, Mister Mayor. I mean…"

"Just call me Leopold. I'm not someone who stands on ceremony." He swept open the back door to his car. "Your carriage awaits, my ladies."

Emma sat in her chair and watched the couples on the floor. Mary-Margaret was off dancing with August Booth. Milah and Killian were cuddled together in each others arms, unmindful of the faster pace of the song. And Ruby and Graham were over by the buffet table deep in conversation. Everyone seemed to have someone and here she was alone. Always alone, it really should be her mantra. Emma rose and decided to head to the ladies room to put some water on her face. It was sweltering inside the gym with all the kids and chaperones.

It only took a couple of minutes, as there were hardly any girls inside the restroom, for once that night. Must have been because prom was almost over and everyone was determined to get in the last bit of memories they could cherish for the rest of their lives. Or maybe they had already left with a certain someone. One more hour and the nuns would be escorting the stragglers out so they could lock the doors.

Emma exited the room and ran into a muscular chest. She glanced up and saw Killian Jones smiling down at her. His eyebrow shot up. "Swan."

"Sorry," she mumbled, after she realized she had been staring. He looked gorgeous in his black tux. He didn't go with the white shirt like most of the other students. No, he went black with black on black, his dress shirt open slightly revealing his chest. She began to walk around him and lowered her eyes.

He grabbed her arm and turned her back to him. "Are you avoiding me, Swan?"

At his question, she looked up at him and met his cerulean blue eyes. "No, not avoiding you."

He sidled closer. His hand still resting on her arm, no longer holding it tightly, but running his thumb across her skin in a light caress. "It sure feels like it on my end, lass."

Emma shrugged. It wasn't like they spoke to each other every day. The only times they said more than five words to each other was whenever she helped him get cleaned up after an incident with Gold.

He gaze searched hers for answers to questions she had yet to contemplate. Then he gave her a side grin and raised his eyebrow once more. The look was devastating to her already trembling heart. "Cat got your tongue, Swan?"  
>"I just don't have anything to say."<p>

He leaned in super close. His hand moved away from her arm and pressed the small of her back toward him. Their noses almost touched, his legs surrounded by the gauze of her skirt. "You look beautiful."

Emma could almost taste the liquor on his breath, it was so strong. "You're drunk."

"Worried?" His grin grew bigger. The Cheshire Cat would have a hard time keeping up with the width of it.

"Only if you're driving." Emma pushed away from him. He was making her uncomfortable, not because he scared her, but when he was this close she was scared of herself. Scared she might actually reach out and do the one thing she dreamt of since she saw him up on the hill Halloween night: kiss him.

She shook her head and turned away from him. She felt his hands on her shoulders. Goosebumps littered her skin. His soft lips touched the back of her neck near her shoulder.

"Thanks for worrying about me."

She felt him let go, but she did not turn around. It was then she heard footsteps. She quickly looked back and realized he walked away. She suddenly felt cold without his touch and wrapped her arms around herself.

"Someone has to," she whispered to his retreating back.

Mary-Margaret and Emma left shortly after her interaction with Killian. Emma thanked Mr. Blanchard as he helped her exit the car in front of Johanna's house. She waved good-bye to both of them and watched them drive away. It was then a shadow caught her attention down by the streetlight across the street.

Emma squinted trying to get a better look at the man who seemed to be watching her. She had never seen the man before and was confused as to why he seemed so interested in her. She turned to head into the house, but felt compelled to look back. He still stood there leaning against his cane. Gooseflesh prickled on her skin. Unlike with Killian, this left her with fear. Something about the man across the street frightened her and she had no idea why.

The light suddenly went out, but Emma tried to focus on the darkness to watch the man, but it was nearly impossible. When the light came back on, the man was gone. Emma shivered. She hoped she never had any reason to come across that man again. He frightened her on some deep level, more than any other person she had ever met.


	15. Chapter 15

**A/N: **I apologize. Once again I forgot to tag the last chapter as a flashback. We are now back to the present. Thank you to all of my followers. I hope everyone is enjoying this story.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of these characters.

**Chapter 15:**

"What the bloody hell does a man have to do to get your attention, love?"

Emma jumped. She closed her eyes and counted to ten before she swiveled around. Killian leaned against the doorframe outside of Graham's office. His arms crossed across his leather clad chest. He looked like he just stepped out of a GQ magazine. Damn him.

"I caused a ruckus at the docks. Broken into the town hall. And even had Graham send you to the library and nothing. You never once noticed I was there." He strode over to her and proceeded to rest against the corner of her desk. He looked down at her his eyebrow raised waiting for her to answer the question he never asked.

"And I was supposed to know you were behind all these little incidents, how?" she questioned back. Emma glared at him. For the last week, she assumed Graham had been sending her on a wild goose chase all over town after some phantom. Now she knew it was the ghost of Killian Jones that she should have been looking for, because if she didn't calm down soon she was going to kill him with her bare hands right her in the Sheriff's Office.

"Like I said, just trying to get your attention, love."

The man couldn't be more annoying, more egotistical, more blatantly sexy, more… _What that puppy eyes? Oh My God_! He was giving her puppy eyes.

"My dashing good looks just swept all the words right out of you." He grinned, making her blush, which made her angry.

"Well, you have my attention now. What do you need, Jones?" Emma stood up. She needed to put some space between them. Sitting in front of him just made her irritated. Or so she tried to convince herself.

"Hmm. What do I want?" Killian rubbed his ear. Then he looked up at the ceiling as if he actually contemplated the question. He looked back at her with a smoldering look lighting his eyes. "Better question would be, what you want?"

Emma pulled the handcuffs off her back and held them up. She might actually get a raise if she arrested him. He had a warrant out for his arrest after all. "How about you in that cell over there?"

"Oh! So kinky, Swan. I like it." Killian straightened and approached her, just shy of actual contact. "We can play your games first and then later it's my turn."

He winked at her. _He Goddamn winked at her_. Sadly, her mind could picture the scene of the two of them in the cell with him hand-cuffed to the bars. He taking her time exploring every inch of his naked body with her hands and tongue. She shook her head trying to escape the erotic thoughts. She seriously needed to snap out of this.

"You look like you are taking it under consideration. So, I'll let you think it over, I know I will." He smoothed some of her hair back over her shoulder. "I'll see you tomorrow by the docks, say around noon."

He leaned down and placed a soft kiss on her cheek and with a cocky grin that only Killian could pull off without someone thinking that they were over doing it, he gave her a sharp salute and walked out.

Emma went back to her chair and plopped down. Killian Jones was barely back in her life and already he was doing some serious damage to her hormones. Maybe she just needed to get him out of her system. It worked for other guys she met over the years. Just a one night stand to get sexual energy out and she could forget all about him. Who was she kidding? In all the years, in all the relationships she ever had, she compared every man to what she thought Killian might be like. Not one of them ever came close to how she imagined him to be and he was so much more than her dreams could have ever pictured and now he even had one less hand.

Noon, the next day, Emma patrolled the docks, not because Killian told her to meet him there, but because if she was good at her job as deputy she needed to make sure that everyone was safe. Okay, that even sounded like a lame excuse in her own head, there was no way Killian was going to fall for it.

She shoved her hands into her back jeans pockets and walked to the harbor. The air was brisk. Snow didn't seem like it was too far away. Neither was Thanksgiving, which never really bothered her, but Mary-Margaret seemed insistent on planning a dinner with all of their friends at their apartment. If it wasn't for her job and Henry, Emma would just skip town next week to avoid the holiday all together.

Emma looked around. Killian did not appear to be anywhere she could see, but Graham was there deep in discussion with the mayor. They seemed like they were arguing. Not wanting to interfere, as she was unsure if it was a personal matter or a city one, Emma walked off in the opposite direction toward the cannery.

Maybe Killian was hiding out amongst the buildings since the mayor was nearby. As she approached the large structure, she heard a crash on a nearby boat. Emma withdrew her service weapon and slowly walked toward the vessel.

"Who's there?" she called out as she stepped aboard. Emma hoped it wasn't Henry trespassing again. She and Regina had already had words when a couple of kids accused Henry of stealing last week at the drug store.

When she was grabbed from behind and pressed against the mast of the sailboat, she almost emptied her gun at her assailant. That was until she heard the accented voice in her ear. "You got to picture your fantasies last night. It's my turn."

For a man with one hand he was incredibly nimble with it. He removed her pistol from her hand, as his hips held her in place. Then he found a way to grasp both of her wrists and raise them above her head. It was only then he looked her in the eyes and grinned.

"And here I thought you were in hiding because Regina and Graham were nearby." She glared back at him and tried to wiggle her wrists from his hold.

"Well, I never planned on an audience, but if you're into that, I guess I could be convinced." His wink almost drove her over the edge. Ever since she had been incarcerated, she had a thing about being confined. And even though they were out in the open, the fact that he held her securely enough that she couldn't get loose scared her. No matter what circumstances threw at her she tried to maintain control. Something she was deprived of most of her life.

"What the hell happened to you, Killian? Let go of me," she commanded.

He seemed taken aback whether from her tone of voice or her question she was unsure, but she hoped to find out. No one told her more of his story than what Mary-Margaret had originally informed her of the first day they met again. There had to be more to it or he wouldn't be the way he was. The good kid messing with the wrong crowd was gone, in his place was a cynical man who used innuendo, his commanding presence and good looks to get him what he wanted.

"You want to go with that one first, Swan?" He narrowed his eyes at her, but released his grip. He looked dangerous, but now that he let her go, she no longer feared him.

She rubbed her wrists. They didn't hurt, he had been careful, but it was just a relief to be free. Emma watched him turn and pace the deck. "If I can help, I will. Just tell me what happened."

He turned and with a purposeful stride came up to her. "Now you care?"  
>"I always did." How could he question that?<p>

She took care of him whenever he had a run-in with Gold in high school. Okay, so she left town. It was her chance to get out of a system that had ruined her life and she ran as hard and as fast as she could to escape it. That didn't mean she hadn't cared about the people she met along the way. Hell, sometimes she cared too much. Killian had been a fine example of that until he and Milah stomped on her heart senior year. Even with all of that she had tried to send him a letter once after she left town. She had no idea where to send it, but she mailed it to Johanna hoping she would have some way of seeing it off to Killian in the navy. Johanna had told her that she mailed it out and Emma waited for months to receive a reply. Neal liked to tease her about her non-existent pen pal. Emma just figured he had never cared enough to reply. She had a diary full of letters that she wrote to him telling him things while she was in prison. She had never any intention of mailing a single one, but it just felt good that she had someone to talk to, even if that someone never cared enough back to write. Hell, even Neal never seemed to care about her once she took the fall for him. All the correspondence he ever sent her was some car keys in an envelope.

Damn it. He was walking away. And he said that _she_ was the one who didn't care? Well, let him. She knew how _she_ felt. She picked up her gun from the deck and holstered it. She had ever intention of walking off that boat and never speaking to Killian Jones again, but her feet obviously felt that she needed to confront him.


	16. Chapter 16

**A/N: **Hope all of you are ready for a long chapter. It took me literally two weeks to write this chapter, between trying to get it right and all the stuff with my mom visiting and Halloween events. I hope all of you enjoy it. Thank you for reviews and follows. I appreciate each and every one.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters.

**Chapter 16: **

**10 years ago**

Senior year seemed a lot quieter with Milah and her clan graduating the year before. There were no accidents, no constant bullying, no watching over their shoulders for the next thing to happen, and no jealousy, well at least on the part of Emma and Milah. Mary-Margaret, on the other hand, had been the green-eyed monster's friend ever since David Nolan walked into school escorting Kathryn wearing his class ring around her neck.

Ruby and Graham had become an item over the summer, but now they barely spoke two words to one another. When Mary-Margaret or Emma confronted them about it they always said 'go ask Graham' or 'go ask Ruby' depending on who they spoke to.

Mary-Margaret and Emma had become inseparable. They shared most of the same classes together. Johanna had agreed to foster Emma until she graduated and became of age to get out of the system about a couple months later. Life was going well for Emma, something she never expected.

"So, are you going to the Halloween dance tonight?" Mary-Margaret asked as they sat down for their Chemistry class.

"Johanna insisted. She volunteered to chaperone this year." Emma dug her book out of her bag. She wasn't the greatest fan of Science, but so long as she concentrated she had a shot of getting through it without any extra tutoring. And with Graham shutting them out recently, she was glad she didn't need to go to him for help.

"What are you dressing as?" Mary-Margaret whispered as the teacher walked in before the bell rang.

"It's a surprise."

"C'mon, you can tell me," Mary-Margaret pleaded.

"No." Emma turned to look at her friend, who was pretending an interest in their book. "I don't know. Johanna's been working on it, but she hasn't told me what it is."

"I bet it is going to be cool. I'm going as Snow White this year. I just wish I had a date to go as Prince Charming." Mary-Margaret's face turned solemn. Emma could tell her friend really wished that David was going with her.

Emma patted her arm and gave her a soft smile. "One day, I bet you will find your True Love. If anyone could, it would be you."

"Well, frankly, I'm sick of wishing at the well for it," Mary-Margaret joked with a tear in her eye.

That afternoon Emma couldn't wait for Johanna to show her the costume. She never liked surprises and patience was not a strong suit either.

"Okay, Emma. It's finished," Johanna called from her sewing room.

Emma rushed inside. She looked everywhere but couldn't' see a costume anywhere. Surely after all this time of hearing Johanna in here sewing during her evenings off, Johanna wouldn't announce Emma was going in the Emperor's New Clothes.

"Where is it?" Emma was confused. There had to be a costume somewhere.

Johanna laughed, her short round body shaking in its mirth. She turned to the table behind her and pulled a bright red gown from it and held it up for Emma's perusal.

It was exquisite. Ruby silk cut to perfection. And on the table where it had laid were golden slippers adorned with crocodiles on the front.

"It's…It's beautiful." Emma was afraid to touch it. Johanna led her over to the floor length mirror and held it up in front of her.

"You'll look ravishing, my dear."

Emma felt the tears come down her face before she realized she was even crying. Johanna brushed them away from her cheeks quickly with the end of her cotton sleeve. "No need to stain the dress before you even put it on, dear."

Emma chuckled wanly and swiped some of the other tears that escaped.

"Now, we can't have any of that. Your eyes do not need to match the dress," Johanna softly scolded. She placed the dress carefully across Emma's arm. "Go try it on. There isn't much time for alterations before the carriage I hired arrives."

"You hired a carriage?"

Johanna smiled at her and pushed her toward the door. "Of course. A princess should always arrive at her first royal ball in style."

Emma walked into the Halloween Dance and everyone turned to stare. She glanced around afraid Milah was about to do something to her, as that seemed to be the only time people took notice of her. Milah, unlike her friends, did not attend college this year and remained in town which made Emma cringe every time she ran into the older girl.

Several guys around her age approached and asked her to dance, but she refused. Emma was determined to locate Mary-Margaret and find out what was going on. Emma spotted Ruby across the room dressed as some sort of sexy wolf girl. She was draped across Dr. Whale, a new intern at the hospital, who was costumed as a pig.

"She's not exactly subtle is she?"

Emma jumped and turned to find Graham standing next to her. "Who are you dressed as?"

"A huntsman, of course."

"Well, then." They both laughed.

Mary-Margaret sidled up to the two of them. "You're not here for my heart are you?" she joked.

"I could never hurt you, my princess." Graham gave her a dramatic bow. "However, a wolf's pelt may soon be decorating my wall." He cast a sideways glance in Ruby's direction.

"Graham!" Mary-Margaret scolded.

"She started it," he sounded like an unrepentant five-year-old. He turned to Emma. "You look…"

"Too much?" she asked as she spun in a circle. "I told Johanna that there was no way I could pull this off."

Mary-Margaret pulled Emma to face her. "You look amazing. Don't put yourself down. My goodness, I love your hair pulled up like that."

Johanna had styled Emma's hair in an upsweep with a small beaded crown in the front. A few tendrils on each side trickled down. If her wench costume last year had made her uncomfortable, this one was worse, as it not only showed off her maturing body but also made her the center of unwanted attention. However, even Emma had to secretly admit she looked good in the gown, but to hear praise from others still made her blush and feel self-conscious.

"Well, my lady, you must dance with me." Graham offered his hand out to Emma.

"No," she protested. "I can't dance, Graham. Take Mary-Margaret. She loves to dance."

Graham turned to their other friend, arm extended. Mary-Margaret performed a small curtsy and took laced her arm through his. They walked off to the area sectioned to dance and stepped easily into the formation.

"So, why are we stopping in this Storytown again?" William Smee, also known as Rat, asked as they approached the town.

"Storybrooke and I need to pick up some stuff a friend stuck in storage for me before we head back to Annapolis. Plus, I wanted to see my lass before I head back for officer training," Killian told his basic training buddy as he continued to drive the rental car.

"Why did you insist we be in dress whites if we're just hitting a storage unit?" Smee seemed confused, for good reason, as though the men were friends, Killian knew the man had the gift for gab and did not always divulge every detail to him.

"There's a Halloween dance in town tonight. It's held every year. We'll need to pick up a couple of masks, but everyone'll just assume we're in costumes in our whites," Killian informed him as they passed the Welcome to Storybrooke sign.

"Well, I can't wait to meet the infamous Emma Swan," Smee said with a smile.

"Milah."

"Who's Milah?" Smee sounded confused.

"My girlfriend."

"Wait, I thought Emma was your girl. You're always talking about her."

Killian pulled off to the side of the small town square and parked. There was no way they'd get any closer to the storage unit for the masks, as it ran next to where the dance was being held.

"No. I don't"

"But you do."

Killian shot the man a look that dared him to say anymore at his peril. The small rotund man quickly closed his mouth. "My lass's name is Milah. She's beautiful. Wait until you see her. Long dark hair. Blue eyes that make you think of the Caribbean Sea. A body to die for."

He exited the car and locked up once Smee followed him out. He crossed to where Smee stood on the sidewalk and lead the man down the road to where they needed to go.

"So, Emma's free then?" Smee turned and looked at him with a sparkle of interest in his eyes.

Killian resisted the urge to hall the man up to the nearest building and beat him bloody. Instead he closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. "As far as I know, but I don't think you stand a chance Rat. C'mon, the storage facility is this way."

He led his friend around the town to where Graham and his parents stored Killian's things. He keyed in the code and they headed inside to storage locker 24. Inserting the key into the lock, Killian opened the door and quickly found the box he needed for their masks. He looked around. He would have to be back early tomorrow to go through the other boxes for the things he needed before he and Smee had to head back to Annapolis by the afternoon.

Emma sipped her punch and swung her legs as she watched the dancers from her seat in the corner. A few guys had come up asking her for a dance, but she refused them all. She took the last sip and stood up to throw her cup away. Her eyes searched for Mary-Margaret. She hadn't seen her friend in over an hour.

"Swan."

Emma turned to the voice that sounded much like the one she had only dreamed of for the past several months, the owner long gone, headed off for distance ports of call. A handsome man stood before her. It couldn't be Killian Jones. As much as he had an athletic body in high school, he couldn't have formed this quickly into the muscular man before her. Maybe it was his elusive brother, Liam, whom she had never had the chance to meet. She performed an awkward curtsy.

"Hook," she replied, reading the name embroidered on the patch attached to his shirt.

He chuckled. It was smooth and elegant and made Emma blush to her roots. He gave her an elegant bow. "Would m'lady like to dance?"

"I'm afraid, I cannot." She saw his smile falter. "Not that I don't want to," she quickly assured him, "I just don't know how."

"Well, there's a secret to it," he informed her as he grasped her hand and lead her to the dance floor.

"What's that?" she asked genuinely confused. No one had told her there was a trick to learning the complicated dance the other couples were doing.

"Pick a partner who knows what he is doing." He winked at her from behind his black mask and gave her a sultry grin.

He swung her around and assisted her in the proper hand hold. Then he led her fluidly into the dance.

Emma was entranced. She couldn't believe she was actually dancing the waltz. This guy surely could perform magic. It was then she heard him laugh and her heart faltered.

"I'm doing it wrong, aren't I?"

"Why no, Miss Swan. You dance as gracefully as your name."

He swung her in an elegant circle around him as he knelt at her feet. "I wish you wouldn't make fun of me."

He stood and took her back into his arms. "On the contrary, I find that you are a natural."

The dance ended and he bowed to her as she curtsied. He led her from the dance floor and out to the terrace. The night was beautiful. The stars gleamed in the sky like a thousand diamonds.

"Have you enjoyed your evening?" he inquired as they stood there looking out.

"Not as much as I am right now," Emma admitted and blushed at her bluntness. She really hadn't meant to say that out loud.

"Well, then I am glad to have been of assistance, lass. I just wish that I could spend the entire night under the stars with you, however, I have already promised my night to another." He took her hand once more and pressed a kiss to the back of it, as he bowed over it.

Emma dipped low as best she could in response. She was sorry to see him go. Apparently, she had a thing for the Jones brothers. She looked up and gave him a smile.

"Oh, love. You have no idea what that smile does to me," his voice sounded gruff and strained.

She didn't know if she leaned into him or he pulled her to him, or even if they both contributed to the embrace, but she found herself tucked in his arms. He forehead pressed against hers before his lips gave her the briefest caress. A small moan opened her mouth and he deepened the kiss.

Her hand reached up and pulled his dark locks tight, wanting to keep him anchored against her. She had never experienced this feeling before and she didn't want it to end. His grip tightened around her. His right hand tangling into her own hair, as his left kept her locked against him. He pressed her back to the small wall. Her dress was sure to be terribly crushed, but it barely registered in her mind.

She felt his right hand slip down and caress her skin above the neckline of her gown. She ached for him to touch her further, but she had never had sex before and was uncertain as to what she wanted.

"There you are, Killian."

Emma sprang back from the man in front of her, teetering over the balcony, but he pulled her back and steadied her. He turned to the voice and tried to conceal her body with his own from the person who interrupted them.

_ Oh my God_! She had been kissing Killian Jones. She reached up and touched her kiss swollen lips in stunned silence. He was the one man, despite her deep feelings for him, she had promised herself to never act on those thoughts. _This couldn't been happening_.

"Wow! You really know how to get her to forget herself," Milah mocked as she stood taking pictures. "Caroline will love these for the yearbook this year."

It was then that Emma realized that Killian had released the top of her corset and her chest lay exposed to all around. And with Milah and her friends snickering nearby taking pictures, Emma felt mortified.

"I'm sorry, Emma," Killian apologized, but it sounded strained, almost as if it was forced.

It seemed Emma had been set up by Killian and his girlfriend to make her life in Storybrooke an absolute hell. Emma hated to contemplate it as Johanna had been so good to her, but she might have to just leave to avoid the abject humiliation that was sure to come. Here Emma had been sure that she might finally be safe from Milah and her bullying, but this proved that there was no safety anywhere in this town.

"Emma!" Mary-Margaret scurried over to her. She quickly covered Emma up and relaced her corset. Mary-Margaret glared at the people surrounding them. "You should all be ashamed of yourselves."

Mary-Margaret dragged the shell-shocked Emma down the terrace stairs to the gardens below. When they reached a table and chairs, she pushed Emma down into a seat. It was only then as Mary-Margaret held her that Emma allowed herself to cry the tears that had been threatening to overwhelm her.


	17. Chapter 17

**A/N: **Okay, because I love each and every one of you, I decided to quickly type up another chapter for you. And because I know you wanted to know what would happen once Emma followed Killian. Thank you all.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters.

**Chapter 17:**

"Bloody hell," Killian cursed as he stormed down the stairs. He couldn't get away from Emma and the conflicting emotions she brought with her fast enough.

"Killian, wait."

If she had called him Jones he would have found the nearest place to hide and stayed there, but because she said his name in her lilting voice, however commanding, he stopped and faced her. He watched her quickly descend the stairs he had just come from.

"Damn it, Killian. If either one of us has a right to be mad it should be me."

Emma stepped up to him and poked him in the chest. Her eyes blazed with fury. "You pretty much screwed me up the last two years of high school. Then after that incident at the Halloween Dance, you left town and were never heard from again. No apologies, no reasons as to why you and Milah pulled that horrible stunt, that made me a laughing stock of the whole school, not to mention town, for the rest of the year. Then you pop up out of nowhere in a town, that from what I hear, you shouldn't be anywhere near, let alone in and decide that you can resume whatever fun and mental games you had going on with me over a decade ago."

Her eyes narrowed. She closed in on him, her finger jabbed even harder into his chest, right above where his shirt lay opened. He was sure to have nail marks.

"Well, ou have another thing to think about if you believe, even for a second, I'll play along. I'm sick and tired of playing games and believing in the wrong people. So, to hell with you and your innuendos and smoldering glances."

She was about to storm away, be he grabbed her quickly and spun her back around so hard she landed against his chest. His left arm encircled her waist anchoring her.

"I play some dangerous games, princess, and I don't think you want to be involved with them. However, love," he said as he gestured between them. "This thing between us has been simmering for years. I might have been blinded before, then life knocked me on my bloody ass and made sure I knew the difference between it and this sport you think we are playing."

She stared at him, her eyes widening at his impassioned speech. Her lips opened slightly as if they waited for her brain to form the words for her to speak. "Killian…"

That was all it took for him to snap. He crushed her against him and captured her lips. His tongue plundered inside, pillaging every drop of sweetness for him to taste. He felt her hands clench his jacket. His head tilted to the side in an attempt to take in every bit of her and she met him at every turn.

If he didn't feel the need to breath he would have just stayed there, absorbing her very essences as if it was his life's blood. Their heavy breaths mingled as they peppered each other with kisses, as if afraid to lose contact despite being wrapped around each other from the chest down. He swept her hair off to the side and licked her neck, down to her shirt. He desperately wanted to lay his lips on her neck where it met her shoulder like he had many years before. The spot that he, in his mind, always claimed was his. She grasped his hair and tugged him back. Her lips feasted on his. She gently bit his bottom lip and sucked. His entire body felt like it was on fire. He was about to explode from sensation.

He cupped her breast through her shirt, kneading it. She groaned against his mouth. He rubbed his aching cock against her stomach desperate for relief, but this wasn't the time or place for that. He had to put a stop to this before things went too far for either one of them.

"Emma, lass," he whispered against her lips.

She tugged again at his hair and brushed herself across him, causing him to moan in pleasure and pain. "Love, as much as I would like to continue our tryst, this is not the occasion."

Emma pulled away from him slightly and looked him in the eyes. Hers were smoky green and dilated from the pleasure they were both experiencing. He pressed his forehead to hers and killed her swollen lips gently, his hand entwined within her silken locks.

"I should go." Emma pulled back and turned away.

This time Killian just let her go. He admired her poise as she ascended the stairs. The young girl he had once known was gone. In her place was a woman with confidence, despite the well structured walls she erected around herself. So long as she was in his arms, her prickly exterior crumbled, but even when she protected herself from the hurt the world around her threw her way, Emma still drew him in, just as a moth had no choice but to be drawn into the light.

He pressed his hand to his lips. Her kisses marked him. He may have denied for many years, how long he had loved Emma Swan, but the past was just that in the past, and he was determined to remind himself what love was really like, especially when they could love you back.

Emma walked into the station and spotted Graham over by the filing cabinets. She was still reeling from her encounter with Killian and she had no wish to enter into a conversation with her boss, who, in spite of his relationship with Regina, had hinted a renewed interest in her.

"How was patrol?"

"Good." Emma walked over to her desk and sat. She pulled out the log book which kept record of issues during patrols. In many ways this office had not reached the digital age of the rest of the world. It still amazed Emma how far behind this little hamlet was, and yet, no one seemed bothered by it.

"Anything of interest happen?"

"Nope." She wrote out the log, avoiding any mention of her incident with Killian.

"Did you get any lunch?"

She turned to look at him. He was propped up on the cabinets, his arms crossed. She had to admit he looked damn sexy in his uniform. How had he gone this long and not have been snatched up by anyone other than Regina?

"Actually, I missed it."

He sauntered over to her and looked down. "I was thinking of heading over to Granny's for some grilled cheese. You want me to bring you something?"

Emma's stomach growled at the mention of food. "Same. I love her grilled cheese."

She glanced up at him, before going back to concentrate on her notes. She refused to let him intimidate her. Her mind focused on the task, she barely heard Graham's next question.

"With a side of Killian?"

"Yeah." Emma's head shot up and she stared at him. "What?"

Graham laughed as she blushed. "Tell me you asked me about a side of fries," she pleaded.

"Sorry, lass, no can do." He laughed even harder. "Your lipstick is a little smudged right here."

His hand shot out and swiped at her cheek near her lips. She slapped it away. "Damn you, Humbert. I hate you right now."

She threw her pen at the man who was doubled over from laughing.

"So," Graham choked out as he tried to stop his fit of giggling. "Nothing happened on patrol?"

"Shut up and get the damned grilled cheese, Sheriff," she growled at him.

He nodded but was still chuckling as he left. She was still confused at the relationship the two men had, especially now with Graham being the sheriff of Storybrooke. She didn't think Killian was the type to kiss and tell, pun intended, so Graham must have known Killian was at the docks to see her.

Her phone buzzed. Emma was seriously going to kill Graham if he was calling to still bust her balls about Killian on his way to Granny's. She picked it up and saw text message.

_ Meet me at eight._

Emma did not recognize the number. It had to be Killian. She wasn't sure if she felt up to seeing him again so soon. She set her phone aside. She'd decide later and send him a text back. Then again, the two of them needed to talk, especially after what had transpired on the boat.

She grabbed her phone back and stared down at the message. They definitely needed to talk and tonight was as good a time as any.

_ I'll be there. Where?_

She threw her phone inside her desk drawer. There, it was done. She promised herself not to look at it again until she had to. She was going to set Killian and any thoughts of him aside for now. She was a deputy and she needed to stop being distracted by the man who already took up too much space in her brain.


	18. Chapter 18

**A/N: **Guess I am in a typing mood because I was able to get another chapter for you so soon. I usually write all my stuff long hand, as that is how my creative juices work. My editing is done when I type. Anyway, I hope you enjoy this chapter, though I do apologize it is so short. And for all my Snowing fans you're welcome. I just thought this would make up for Mary-Margaret and the prom fiasco. Hope all of you don't crave Mexican when you are finished. LOL!

**Disclaimer: **I don't own any of the characters.

**Chapter 18:**

**10 years ago**

"There you are," a bundled up Mary-Margaret called from behind Emma through her thick scarf.

Emma waited for her friend to catch up before she went back to walking toward Granny's. School had been cancelled all week after the blizzard that swept through over the weekend. The following week was Christmas, so everyone but the people who had to trek through the conditions to get to work were thrilled by the extra time off.

"I got you a present." Mary-Margaret rifled through her messenger bag and pulled out a small box, handing it to Emma.

"You shouldn't have." Emma took the box and felt horrible because all she was able to save for presents hadn't been much. She had purchased a faux-pearl comb at Modern Fashion for Johanna and a worn-leather book of fairy tales that the library had sold for three dollars at a recent book sale for Mary-Margaret. Emma hadn't even had enough to scrounge up a present for Ruby or Graham.

"Wail until we warm up inside Granny's before you open it, or you'll never feel your fingers again," Mary-Margaret admonished when Emma fiddled with the bow with her gloved hand.

As they approached the door, it opened from the inside. Kathryn stepped out. Her soft woolen jacket and silk scarf didn't look quite warm enough for the weather, but she looked effortlessly stylish none the less. David stood there holding the door with a grin. His long locks looked wind-swept and he hadn't even stepped outside yet. He reminded Emma of a knight of old, slightly unkempt but dashing and noble. David always had a smile on his face, of course that could be because Emma was with Mary-Margaret whenever she ran into him. Emma could picture the two of them together easily and it wasn't just because Mary-Margaret kept talking about the possibility. The two just seemed perfect for each other, unfortunately he was also dating Kathryn, who he seemed committed to, but time would only tell what fate had in store, as Johanna liked to say.

"Hello, ladies."

"Hi, Kathryn. Thank you, David," Emma replied as she walked past the both of them.

"Kathryn." _Oh! _Mary-Margaret almost sounded icy.

"Mary-Margaret." _Okay, now that was icy_.

The temperature had to have dipped by ten degrees. Emma could feel the extra chill in the air and she was now inside.

"Thank you, David." Mary-Margaret smiled sweetly at him. "You are always so charming."

"You're quite welcome." He grinned back, dipping his head in a slight bow. "I hope you have a wonderful Christmas, if I don't get a chance to see you before then."

Emma was stunned because all of a sudden Mary-Margaret raised up on her toes and grabbed David's face between her gloved hands and pulled him down for a kiss. In front of everyone, including Kathryn, who screeched in dismay. David's arms encircled her and drew Mary-Margaret closer. The door closed with a bang leaving only Kathryn separate from the display.

When Mary-Margaret pulled away, she gazed up at him, adoration shining in her eyes. She pointed at the small green and red object above their heads. David's eyes followed where she pointed. "Mistletoe."

David blushed and gazed around the diner. He released Mary-Margaret but pecked her on the cheek with a slight grin. "Good excuse. But next time you don't have to stand on ceremony."

With that David turned and left. Mary-Margaret was flushed. She turned to Emma and asked, "Did I really just do that?"

Emma laughed. "You sure did. Plenty of witnesses to back me up."

The girls fell into the back booth giggling, as Ruby approached. She stood there looking at the two of them tapping her pencil against her pad. Granny had insisted Ruby start working there during her senior year in high school. "So, that happened."

All three of them gazed at each other before they busted out with laughter.

"You go girl." Ruby stuck out her hand for a high-five which Mary-Margaret slapped jubilantly after removing her gloves. "So, what are you having for lunch? After that it's on me."

Mary-Margaret glanced over at Emma with a conspiratorial wink. "I know it isn't on the menu, but I am so craving tacos."

Ruby winked. "Tacos. Coming right up. Okay, maybe not right up, as I'll have to convince Granny to make them, but you got it. Even if I have to make them myself."

"Killian? What's wrong?" Liam asked as he approached his younger brother standing at the port bow staring at the stars. "Is that a cigarette?"  
>Liam grabbed the offense item out of his younger brother's hand and threw it overboard. He must have smelled Killian's breath too because his next question was, "Rum?"<p>

Killian only nodded. He knew it wasn't good form to be drinking and smoking on board, especially after his brother requested him out of officer training for this quick diplomatic mission, but after his latest letter from Milah he felt justified. He had picked it up from the barracks and took it with him, refusing to open it until he was at sea. They had just set sail that morning and by the time Killian had a break he quickly unsealed the missive. His hope was that the letter would encourage him to be a better sailor and its effect had been quite the opposite.

Milah had gotten engaged. And not to just anyone, but to Mr. Gold. She insisted that she did not want the relationship, but that her mom had been encouraging the match for the past year, claiming that Killian wasn't going to bring her daughter anything but heartache and grief. According to Killian's calculations that was about the time that Gold started harassing him.

Killian had sent her a beautiful locket from the south of Spain, that he had Liam acquire for him, for Christmas. And this was the response to his gift. No thank you. No, I miss you Killian. No, I love you. Nothing. Just a short letter pleading with him to understand. Maybe he did something wrong. Maybe he should just buy a ring and go to Storybrooke on bended knee and tell her to marry him instead. If they ran off, maybe, Gold would leave them alone. She could come live with him on base.

"Want to talk about it?"

Killian shook his head, both in response to his brother's question and to clear it from all the variables running through his mind. The last thing he wanted right now was to put voice to what Milah had written. That's why he had searched out the bottom of a flask of rum and a cigarette, both of which he traded for with some of the crew.

Liam backed against the rail next to him. His arm surrounded Killian's shoulders. "When you want to talk, I'm here."

Killian nodded and leaned into his older brother, much like he did when they were younger. It didn't matter that one was the officer and one was the subordinate, right at that moment they were nothing more than brothers.

Liam reached up and rubbed his hand over Killian's shorn locks. "Get cleaned up, Sailor. You're on watch in an hour."

Leave it to Liam to break the mood. Killian straightened his stance, turned and faced Captain Jones and saluted. "Aye, Captain."

Liam grabbed him and pulled him into a tight hug. Kilian froze. Hugging hadn't been a big part of their family life, but it felt good to feel loved.

"I'm here when you need me. Whenever. Wherever. I'll make time for you." Liam pushed Killian away and peered at him in his best commander's stare. "Now go rinse your mouth and remember the good form you so demand of yourself and others. I'll see you on deck in less than an hour."

Killian once again saluted and made a crisp pivot turn. It might be easy enough to rid himself of the smells of the rum and cigarettes, but it wouldn't be as easy to rid his mind of the catastrophe his life had become.


	19. Chapter 19

**A/N: **Thank you to all my new followers and all my followers who have pretty much been with me on this journey from the beginning. I really hope you love the ride we are all on because I know that I am enjoying the telling of this tale.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters.

**Chapter 19:**

Emma had to drive past the mayor's house to get to the park where Killian asked to meet. As she drove, she looked over and thought of Henry and spotted Graham sneaking out of Regina's bedroom window. She slammed on her brakes and pulled over. Getting out, she leaned against the yellow Bug, parked in front of the Sheriff's cruiser.

"Emma!" Graham pulled up short, his jacket half hanging off his arms as he tried to put on his shoe.

"You know it's one thing to hear people joke around about you having an affair with the mayor, but to actually see you climbing out of her window…" Emma dramatically shuddered in a show of distaste. Then it hit her. "Does Henry know? He doesn't, does he?"

She stared at him accusingly. If Henry knew that Regina was seeing Graham how much more would that effect him, if it hadn't already? He was currently seeing Dr. Hopper because he was having trouble adapting to his family situation, so how much more could they all mess the kid up?

"No." Graham hung his head shamefully. "Regina would prefer it if it remained that way."

"What would you prefer?"  
>Graham looked at her as if confused by the question, as if he was never asked his opinion before, which she knew was a bunch of malarkey. "I'd rather just walk away. I've never felt anything with her. I've always been in love with someone else."<p>

He grabbed her to him and slammed his mouth down on hers. It slashed forcefully across hers trying to possess. His grip tightened as he ground against her. Emma was overwhelmed by sensation and shocked at Graham's actions.

She pushed him back, as her cell phone vibrated in her back pocket. "I don't know what's gotten into you, Graham, but I think you need to go home."

Emma pulled out her phone and glanced at the screen. She had another text.

_ Where are you? It's after 8._

"I gotta go," Emma told Graham. She stepped away from him and glanced back and saw the desperation in his face, but she was already late. She didn't have the time to deal with Graham's issues. She just hoped they could put this behind them when they both came into work the next morning.

"Hello? Anyone here?" Emma called out.

No one was at the park as far as she could see. She should have texted back that she was on her way.

"I'm here, Miss Swan."

An older man came out of the shadows, using a cane to aid him as he approached. There was something about the man's voice that brought a decisive chill to the air around her.

"You're not Killian," she accused.

"Never said I was, dearie."

He stopped a few feet away from her. His beady brown eyes seemed to miss nothing. Emma was good at names and face, but his alluded her.

"You're…" she fished for his name, but then as his smile snaked across his face, she had her answer. "Mr. Gold."

"Apparently, my reputation proceeds me."

"What do you want?" She cast him a sideways glance. This was a dangerous man and she was out here alone. She hadn't even told Mary-Margaret about her meeting tonight. Hell, even Graham, whom she just left, had no reason to go looking for her tonight after their confrontation. And should he not see her then next day at the station, he was bound to just think she was avoiding him.

"Let's just say that I've heard from a source that the mayor does not look too fondly on your employment nor residence within these city limits."

How could one man just stand there and talk without much movement and be as intimidating as he was?

"Everyone in town is aware of Regina's dislike of that fact that I'm here and back in Henry's life." Emma tried her best to stay calm and keep her voice from inflecting any of the uncertainty she felt in his presence.

"Ah! But does everyone know exactly what Regina is capable of? Maybe you and I should enter into an agreement where I might help you keep Regina from any inclinations she may perceive."

Emma crossed her arms and stared back at him. "I don't think that I would benefit from any deal I might make with you. You seem to consider yourself the guy with all the power here, however, I wear the deputy's badge. Maybe, it is you who should consider looking to me for help, as from a few of the stories I have heard, you have a lot of skeletons hiding within your closets."

If the devil stood before Emma and chuckled it wouldn't have caused as much of the fear that ran through her veins at that moment as Gold's laughter did. Both of his hands rested on the cane before him as he leaned toward her. "I do hope you don't come to regret the decision you seem to have come to, Miss Swan. Especially, considering the choice of friends you seem to have acquired."

"I doubt it and you have no say in who I befriend."

He stared at her for another minute. The area around them as silent as a graveyard and the air thick with fog. The temperature was dropping fast and Emma just wanted to go home. She felt she just made the worst decision of her life, as she was quite away of what Gold was capable of after seeing what he did to Killian all those years ago.

She shuddered, more out of the unknown than from the cold. He nodded at turned to go, a grimace on his features. She walked back to her car and sat in the driver's seat. She didn't even have the energy to turn on the car to escape the cold. She just stared out the windshield replaying the conversation in her head. She faced down men for a living. People who ran from the law. Mr. Gold seemed to be one to just laugh at it. His contempt was beyond disconcerting. He was the man who's blatant disregard for humanity showed in his murder of his own wife, his ruination of Johanna and his indifference to taking Killian's hand. Yes, for some reason she truly believed that Killian had nothing to do with Milah's murder. He wasn't the man who could kill a woman and not be tormented by the deed for the rest of his life.

A rap sounded on her window and Emma jumped. She turned and found Mr. Gold peering in at her. She rolled the window down.

"One last thing, Miss Swan. It seems that Killian Jones has returned to town. Even by your own words, you are aware that he may have crossed the town lines. As deputy, it would be in your best interest to apprehend such an individual who had the audacity to murder one of our humble residents. I do hope that you are capable of doing your job considering the history the two of you shared."

"And what history is that?" Emma accused.

"Why, I have heard that the young man once broke a girl's heart after she misled you to believe that he had compromised you on his on violation. He had every intention of hunting you down to apologize, I heard, but was convinced that it would be unwise to further his relationship with you."

"How dare you! What did you do to him?" Emma pushed her door open, making Mr. Gold step back, however unconcerned he seemed by the action.

"Nothing your own father might have done, should you have had the occasion to have one."

Emma stormed up to him. "You had no right."

He didn't appear intimidated by her at all. Instead he just smiled at her. "Oh, I had every right, dearie. The young man in question could have been arrested for molestation of a minor, however, he saw the wisdom of making a quick exit out of town and back to the navy where he belonged. Bilge rats should always stay amongst their own kind."

Emma clenched her fists at her sides. She might not be on duty, but there was no way, as deputy, she could strike the man before her. He ruined so many lives and all he could do was grin his slimy smile.

"I'll do whatever my job calls for me to do, Mr. Gold. You have my word on that. But, should there ever be a time that you find yourself on the wrong side of the law, Mr. Gold, be aware there is no power on Earth that will make me not haul your ass in as quickly as I am capable."

"Neither one of us is a stranger to metal bars, Miss Swan. I just prefer to stay out of them." He turned and proceeded to leave, heading into the dense fog that surrounded them. It was eerie how his voice followed behind him through the darkness. "Have a nice evening, Miss Swan. Please tell Killian I said hello."

Emma shook. Her fingers numb. He knew Killian was in town. She told him. She had to find a way to warn Killian, but she didn't even know how to contact him.


	20. Chapter 20

**A/N: **Just a warning that I am still trying to write chapter 21 so it may be a week (crossing fingers that it is less) before I post the next chapter. Thank you to one and all of my followers and especially people who favorite my stories, as I know from doing it myself, I like to see what others like to find a new story to read.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters.

**Chapter 20: **

**10 Years Ago**

Valentine's Day. Just the thought of it struck a sad note in Emma's heart. It was a day to be loved and love back. Except, Emma never really had either in her life. Sure she was beginning to form special friendships that she would cherish, but Emma always wanted to feel real, true, deep, committed love. Unconditional love. A love that mattered. Since her parents were out of the picture, she never experienced what most kids had and so she had searched over the years for someone to love her, a family, a home. Sure she was still young and had much of her life ahead of her, but she craved the connection the most on holidays like this one.

"Emma. There's something at the door for you," Johanna called from the living room.

Emma shuffled out of her bedroom and down the hall to the front door. When she turned the corner there was an older, rotund man holding a small bouquet of three red roses in one hand and a large vase of red carnations at his feet.

"Are you Miss Swan?" the florist asked with a kind smile.

"Yes."

He walked around the vase. "These are for you." He handed her the roses and indicated the vase. "Those as well. It looks like someone has some admirers. Have a wonderful Valentine's Day, sweetheart."

Emma blushed and thanked him as she smelled the roses. She heard the door close as he left him, her eyes staring down at the perfect red buds clenched in her hands.

"Who are they from?" Johanna asked from behind her.

"I don't know." Emma searched through the roses in her hand, but there did not seem to be a card.

Johanna had walked over to the carnations and pulled out a small note card. "There's one on this one."  
>She handed it to Emma, who gently handed over the roses and opened the small envelope. The card read, <em>I hope you will join me for both the Valentine's Day dance and for prom. Yours sincerely, Graham<em>.

"Wow. He really went all out," Emma said as she handed the card to Johanna, who once she read it squealed in delight.

"The dance is tomorrow. We have so much to do. You have the rest of the weekend to work on your homework. Go and get ready. We'll head over to Modern Fashion to see if they still have a dress." Johanna flew about the room putting things together as she talked. This was the most animated Emma had seen her in the past two months. Ever since Christmas, Emma noticed that Johanna seemed more and more sluggish.

Emma grabbed the roses as she passed by. She walked into the kitchen and set them on the counter. She still wondered who they might be from. Maybe the card had been lost during delivery, she would have to call the florist Monday after school to find out. Emma scrounged around and found a small vase under the kitchen sink, filled it with water and clipped the roses so she could put them inside.

She carried the whole thing back into her bedroom, noticing along the way that Johanna had set the large vase of carnations on the coffee table. For some reason, Emma felt drawn to these three single buds much more than the huge bouquet of blooms Graham sent. She placed the small vase next to her alarm clock on her night stand, turning it this way and that until she was satisfied by its placement. Emma was surprised to find herself humming, _I Walked With You Once Upon A Dream _from _Disney's Sleeping Beauty_. She hadn't seen that movie in years and was shocked she still remembered how it went. Maybe, it was a sign that deep in her heart she knew the roses were from some secret admirer she once dreamed of.

Liam walked into the dorm room Killian shared with Jamison Monroe as if he owned the place. Jaime jumped off his bottom bunk and stood at attention, saluting the officer. Killian chuckled as he descended from his upper bunk and shot off a quick salute to this elder brother.

"At ease," Liam told them with a return salute.

Killian plopped down on the only easy chair the room possessed while Jaime returned to his bunk and the letter he spent the better part of the last hour composing to his girlfriend. Liam walked around the small love seat and sat down, facing Killian.

"So, are you going to the Officer's Ball next week?" Liam addressed him, as he smoothed an non-existent crease from his pants.

"Milah said she'd come down next week with her mother to attend. I had asked her to come so we could talk in person," Killian replied as he grabbed a magazine from the table near him and leafed through it, trying to seem casual.

"Milah? That's who you asked?"  
>Killian looked up from the glossy pages confused. "Who else would I ask to go with me?"<p>

Liam raised an eyebrow and stared back at him. "Oh. I don't know…" He smiled at Killian. "Maybe the young lady you sent flowers to Valentine's Day."

"How did you find out about that?"

"You accidentally used my credit card instead of yours." Liam reached for his wallet and pulled out a credit card that looked similar to the one Killian had. He handed it to Killian. "Apparently, when we were at dinner last week our cards were switched. I didn't even know until yesterday."

Killian stared down at the piece of plastic with his name on it. "Bloody hell."

Liam tisked. "Not good form to be cussing in front of an officer, little brother."

Killian chuckled. "Don't you mean younger brother?"

Liam reached over and ruffled Killian's growing hair. "Aye. Not quite so little, but still much younger."

Killian set down the magazine and walked over to his wallet and inserted the card and retrieved Liam's. Handing it to his brother, he sat back down in his char. "Guess I need to pay you back, as I also used it to purchase Milah as ring as well." Killian looked down sheepishly, avoiding his brother's stare.

"A ring?"

Killian nodded.

"Are you thinking about proposing? Wasn't it you who told me she was already engaged to Gold?" Liam's voice sounded harsh and reprimanding, much as it had when Killian was younger and got into scrapes.

Once again, Killian could only nod. He looked up at his brother's accusing eyes. He should have never told him about Milah's letter. But if he couldn't tell his own brother, who could he tell?  
>Killian tried to defend his actions, much as he did when he was a child. "I just thought maybe she only accepted because she didn't think I'd marry her. She agreed to attend the dance, though her mother insisted on coming as well. I thought it promising. She told me she doesn't want to marry him, but her mother is forcing her hand."<p>

"Is this even a wise decision right now? Remember you just sent flowers to another woman," Liam scolded.

"They were a form of apology, one that was long overdue. And I was unable to do so in person. I'm sure she understands."

"They were three red roses delivered on Valentine's Day. That isn't an apology. That's close to a declaration of love, little brother." Liam's fingers were steepled in front of him, as a sure sign of his agitation.

Killian settled his head in his own hands. He was becoming more confused each passing day, so how would he be able to explain it to his brother. He loved Milah. He had always loved Milah. She was his first love, his first sexual partner. She was the one he should commit to. Every gentlemanly bone in his body screamed that it was the proper thing to do.

But, Emma… She drew him like no other and she didn't even have to try. In fact, other than when he was hurt, she seemed to avoid him like the bloody plague. Except for this past Halloween's dance.

She had flirted and kissed him like he was her one true love. On his loneliest of nights, he found himself reliving the feel of her soft lips pressing upon his own. Her silken hair gliding through his fingers. It wasn't Milah's face that he remembered as he relieved himself in the shower. It was Emma's. Yet, there was no way he could ever see her again. Mr. Gold had seen to that. After he and his henchmen worked him over after Killian berated Milah for what she had done, Gold threatened not only his life, but Emma's, if Killian ever approached her again. He was doomed to never see Emma's face again, except for in his dreams. He refused to see her hurt in any way. She had already had been put in that spot too many times in her young life.

Killian was quite aware of what Gold was capable of and he knew he had yet to encounter the man's full wrath. He hoped he never would have the opportunity to do so.

"It's okay." Liam rose and clasped him on the shoulder. "Love is powerful and strong. Just remember that. If it is meant to be, it will work out despite every obstacle in its way. Don't settle for something that isn't True Love. If you've experienced the real thing, you'll know. We are not all so lucky to be able to have it."

Killian looked up at his brother, once again struck by how wise the older man was. He had aspired from the beginning to live up to his brother's good standards, as he was the only true constant he had ever had.

Killian rose and faced his brother. "Thank you, Liam, but sometimes the obstacles are too hard to overcome. Or the sacrifice is much too great."

"A man unwilling to fight for what he wants, deserves what he gets." Liam chucked him under the chin, much as he had after pep talks when Killian was still young. Liam gave him a quick salute and turned to leave.

Jaime scrambled off the bed, papers flying off his lap as he saluted the officer leaving the room. With a click, Liam was gone, but his words swirled around Killian's brain like a tornado, sweeping everything aside as it burned its way in.

Over and over it repeated, throughout the rest of day and as he went to bed that night.

_ A man unwilling to fight for what he wants, deserves what he gets_.


	21. Chapter 21

**A/N: **Well, I was able to finish my chapter and get all the way up through Chapter 23, so I will reward you with another chapter. I know you have been wanting to know what happens next after Emma met up with Gold. Thank you everyone for your favorites, follows and reviews, you don't understand how much they mean to me.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the characters in this story. They belong to Once Upon A Time.

**Chapter 21:**

Thanksgiving dinner was an awkward affair. Graham and Ruby were still bickering about his relationship with the mayor. Emma had barely spoken to Graham, other than when she had to for work. David had decided to stay home with his wife in a last ditch effort to prove that their marriage was well and truly over. Mary-Margaret turned into a magpie, to get over her anxiety that things would work out between the Nolans and to keep the conversation going on in her own home at a civil level.

Emma had invited Henry over, but he refused. He said his mother would have no one else to spend the holiday with, since Graham was spending time with them. That shocked Emma. Henry was apparently aware of Regina and Graham's affair and longer than everyone realized. Now, as she shoved another bite of mashed potatoes in her mouth to refrain from adding her two cents to Ruby and Graham's fight, she wished Henry was here and Graham was with Regina, no matter how disturbing that thought may be.

Regina had already disrupted everyone in town's lives enough by closing down most of the public buildings for reevaluations from the fire department after the mayor's office caught on fire the week before, just two days before the reunion. Everyone received emails from the committee informing them that the reunion had been postponed until the week before Christmas. Not that the change really effected anyone. Emma had been the only one in her class to leave Storybrooke, other than to attend college.

The weather wasn't being very cooperative with the fire department either, as a blanket of snow had settled upon the town a few days before. The chill in the air kept Storybrooke in a state of Winter Wonderland. Mary-Margaret, always cheerful, seem entranced by it, as she said it reminded everyone of the holidays. The fact that it gave her an extra day off from school before her big Thanksgiving dinner probably also attributed to her calm and peaceful demeanor.

Emma, however, had been anything but calms since her meeting with Mr. Gold. Afraid that Gold may have been having her followed she avoided contacting Killian, however she had slipped an anonymous note onto Graham's desk to warn Killian that Gold was aware of his presence in town. Emma had no idea if Graham warned him, but she hoped that Killian knew and would take heed.

Lost in her own thoughts she was unaware of the fact that Mary-Margaret was addressing her until Ruby kicked her under the table. "Sorry. What were you saying?"

"I was wondering if you wanted to wait for dessert or would you like some pie now?"

Emma glanced down at her half-eaten plate. Everything on it was cold as dinner had been served over an hour ago. Emma decided to decline dessert and reheat her own plate. "Not right now. I think I'll just go put this in the microwave."  
>She rose and brought her plate into the kitchen. Placing it in the microwave, she watched Mary-Margaret fuss over removing dishes from their small dining table. Ruby also stood and helped her bring them into the small kitchen.<p>

"What's wrong with you, Emma?" Ruby asked after she stacked her dishes in the sink.

Saved for a quick second by the dinging of the microwave, Emma removed her steaming plate. "Just have a lot on my mind. After the mayor's accident a lot of people have been concerned over the well-being of the other buildings around town."

"Tell me about it. Granny was pissed when she had to shut down yesterday for the inspection. She told them to have it done by midnight last night, or no one was going be able to have Thanksgiving." Ruby laughed. "Gotta give it to Granny, she know how to light a fire under someone's butt."

Mary-Margaret and Emma chuckled. Granny was not someone to be trifled with.

"Shouldn't the fire department be fielding the calls instead of the police?" Mary-Margaret asked as she started taking out containers so they could pack away the food in the refrigerator.

"They would, but they have been too busy trying to complete the inspections before the holiday. They still haven't finished, but Graham decided to offer our office as a contact point for them." Emma slid her plate in the only available space on the counter and pulled over a bar stool and sat down.

"Missing something?"

A fork was held in front of her. Emma reached out for it, but Graham held it over her head.

"Childish, much?" Emma glared at him.

"Oh! Who's being childish? Little miss Emma-I'm-not-jealous-but-I-won't-speak-to-you-unless-I-have-to-Swan?"

Emma crossed her arms. "I am not jealous. I just would have thought you would have had a better plan for your relationship with my son's mother."

Graham, who was still holding her fork aloft, grimaced. "It's what she wanted. Who am I to question the will of a woman."

"Henry know, by the way. He told me."

Ruby and Mary-Margaret were doing their best to listen in on the conversation, while attempting to act occupied by cleaning up the food.

Graham looked startled by the revelation. And in his shock he lowered his arm. Emma grabbed her utensil with a triumphant grin and shoved a bite of turkey into her mouth.

"When did he tell you?" Graham plopped down in one of the other bar stools with a dejected look on his face.

"A week ago, after I rescued Regina from the fire in her office," she mumbled while chewing some corn and mashed potatoes.

"No," Graham groaned. "Regina is going to kill me."

"Well," Ruby interjected with a smile on her face, "Whale hasn't delved into mercy killing yet, but I can ask if he can practice on you first if you want. This way you don't have to worry about Regina."

Graham glowered at her. Ruby held her hands up in defense, laughing. "Just teasing, Graham."

Emma and Mary-Margaret chuckled at Graham's growl. Mary-Margaret placed the last of the food in the fridge, while Emma rose to put her now empty plate in the sink. She and Mary-Margaret had agreed to leave the dishes until the morning. Since Emma had the day off, the two of them decided on a day of bonding at home and a small amount of holiday shopping after lunch.

"Let's go see what holiday movies are playing," Mary-Margaret called out as she shepherded everyone out of the tiny kitchen area and into the living room.

For the first time since high school, Emma felt an easy camaraderie fall over the four of them as they sat there enjoying _Miracle on 34__th__ Street_. They laughed and joked as if all the problems over the last several years hadn't happened. As if Emma had never left. It felt strange and right all at the same time.

They followed it with It's A Wonderful Life and it had grown quite late. Graham and Mary-Margaret had each fallen asleep. Their bodies slumped into each other on the end of the couch.

"They're exhausted. Mary-Margaret has been up since five a.m. working on dinner," Emma informed Ruby.

"Yeah and Graham is just plain exhausted from his nightly activities at the mayor's office and then working all day at the Sheriff's Office." Ruby went and collected blankets from the closet near Mary-Margaret's room and placed them on the sleeping occupants of the couch.

Emma silently laughed. "You're bad, Ruby Lucas."

Ruby shrugged and smiled.

Emma's phone chose that moment to vibrate on the table by the front door. She ran over to grab it before the noise could disturb her friends. It was a transferred call from the station.

"Hello, Deputy Swan."

The caller quickly outlined a mysterious presence out by the town line. Emma promised to look into it. Graham was supposed to be on duty, but she didn't have the heart to wake him. She hung up and searched for Graham's walkie talkie. When she found it, she realized the battery had died.

"Damn. Guess I have to go to the office for the spare."

"It isn't working?" Ruby inquired.

"Nope. It's dead. A lot of good it'll do me," Emma replied shaking the device.

"Graham's place is closer. He keeps a spare there," Ruby supplied as she gathered her stuff to head out.

"Unless I break in, there's no way to get it." Emma went up to her room and grabbed both her coat and Ruby's, bringing them both down with her.

"You could always use his spare key. It's in the light fixture outside his door," Ruby told her as they left.

Which is how Emma knew to remove the bottom of the light and fetch out Graham's key. It felt wrong to enter his domain without his permission, but she really needed to get out to the town line. She was sure Graham would understand. She stepped inside and flicked on the light. The walkie was easy to spot, plugged in near his television. She hurried over and grabbed it, relieved to see it was fully charged. She placed the one she took from Graham on the charger in its place.

She turned to leave when she heard a sound coming out of one of the two bedrooms Graham had. Emma walked as quietly as she could to investigate.

She opened the door on the left side of the hallway first. Graham's room. The only other time she had been in there was when she helped him to bed when he was sick. After a glace around, she didn't see anything suspicious. She turned the light one and confirmed nothing seemed out of place, however, Graham seriously needed to get a laundry basket. Guess what she was buying him for Christmas, she thought.

She shut Graham's door and crossed the hallway to the other room. Listening, she could hear the sound of deep breathing. She turned the knob slowly and carefully and pushed open the door. It let out a slight squeak and Emma flinched.

Inside she discovered a lump on the bed. The body groaned. Seeing that it was Killian, as moonlight danced inside the room through the blinds, Emma approached the sleeping form. She wasn't sure why, but she moved closer desperate to see his face at its most vulnerable.

This was the perfect hiding spot for him. Gold would never think to look for him at the residence of the town sheriff. Graham had listened to her warning it seemed. Then again, maybe Killian had really been staying her all this time and even she hadn't realized it.

Emma watched the moonlight drift across his face and chest. Oh my God! Killian was naked under the sheet, or at least as far as the eye could see. He lay on his back, his chest exposed by the lowered sheet resting at his waist and one leg was uncovered from the knee down. The chill in the air did not seem to effect him. Emma, on the other hand, was quite affected by the sight of him. Her nipples puckered in response.

Her hand moved on its own violation. It reached out and brushed across the soft cotton sheet. Emma was suddenly feeling quite warm in the icy room.

She begun to pull her hand away, reprimanding herself, when his own clasped hers. It was meant to hold her, not hurt.

"Milah," he moaned.

Emma flinched. Milah might have been dead for a few years now, but her ghost still seemed to haunt the both of them. She shook his hand off gently and turned to go. His next words made her stop short.

"I love Emma. I shouldn't, but I do. The lass enchanted me." His voice turned to a low mumble and Emma returned to her previous spot hoping to hear him say more. She wasn't disappointed. " I can't love you anymore. Go back to your husband."

Emma saw tears slip from his closed eyes. She was transfixed. She desperately wanted to wipe his tears away. The fear of waking him kept her from doing so, as she was too scared to face him after what she had just heard. She needed time to think.

Questions ran around her mind. _He loved her_? _Since when_? _When did he tell Milah this_? _Did he ever say this to her or was it just a dream_? Emma desperately wanted answers and the urge to shake Killian awake was strong. However, she couldn't face him right now, especially with a job she needed to do looming over her head.

Emma made a decision. She stormed back to Graham's room and searched frantically. In his upper dresser drawer she found what she had been looking for. Taking the cold metal in hand, she returned to where Killian lay in repose.

As silently as she could, she connected one side of the handcuffs to the metal headboard of the bed. She leaned over Killian's head and she tried to quickly warm with her breath. She could just hear Killian with a fast innuendo about pushing her chest in his face and blushed. She slipped it over Killian's wrist, which had come to rest by his head. There. He was certain to stay put until her return. When she completed her duties as deputy, she had every intention of coming back to interrogate the thief who had stolen her heart long before she knew she had a choice about giving it away.


	22. Chapter 22

**A/N: **Well, here is the next chapter. I completely rewrote this from what I originally had. I read it before I was about to type it and hated it. Absolutely hated it. I like the way this chapter turned out so much better. And if all of you read what I had before you would completely agree. So, I hope you enjoy. And, I'm sure you are all still wondering what happened to Killian after the last chapter. You'll still have to wait and see. ;)

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters. They belong to Once Upon A Time.

**Chapter 22:**

**10 years ago**

Emma never did get to attend the Valentine's Day dance with Graham. Johanna had gotten sick hours before the dance and had to be admitted to the hospital. Emma had been so sick with worry that she had told Graham that she couldn't go. He seemed disappointed but told her he understood. A social worker appeared and was concerned as to whether Johanna would be able to fulfill her duties as foster mother. Emma wasn't allowed in on the discussion and ended up pacing the hallways of the hospital for about two hours before the social worker came and informed her that she was satisfied that Emma remained in capable hands until her term with the foster system was complete, unless something else occurred to convince her otherwise.

Emma didn't want to seem too relieved, but she was. As the woman walked away, Emma had done a little jig, before looking around to make sure no one saw. A smile tickling at her face, as even the older janitor who roamed the halls didn't even notice her.

The doctor found her asleep in one of the waiting room chairs around midnight. He asked her if she had anywhere to go with a responsible adult that she could stay with for the next couple of days. Emma nodded and asked to use a phone. Not much later, Mr. Blanchard picked her up. His kindly face was filled with concern as he led her out to his waiting car.

Mary-Margaret had still been awake when they arrived. She held Emma as she cried. Emma hated to always have Mary-Margaret see her like this, but Mary-Margaret told her that she would be there for her whenever she needed her. That's what good friends were for. They were like the family you never had. The family that you actually had a chance to choose.

Johanna quickly recovered over the next few months, but Emma tried to pick up as much of the slack as she could around the house and for the daycare when she wasn't at school. Ruby, Mary-Margaret and Graham come by when they could to help out as well. It seemed that it brought the four of them close together once more. Friday nights the four of them would bond over movies and dinner at Johanna's house after their weekly ritual of turning the house back from a daycare into a home for the weekend.

In just a week prom was going to overcome their Friday night ritual, only Mary-Margaret was not attending. Ruby was currently dating a guy named Billy and she was ecstatic to be going to the formal dance with him, lately it was all she talked about. Graham and Emma, despite Graham's attempts otherwise, were still just friends. Emma cared for Graham, she really did, but thoughts of Killian wouldn't let her move on just yet. He had never showed up in town again since the Halloween dance. And other than Milah, who was recently engaged to Mr. Gold, no one really heard from him. Even Graham, who had tried to contact him several times, hadn't heard a peep from him. Not a letter. Not a phone call. Not even an email.

She knew she had to forget about him. Her life was going to be taking her out of Storybrooke soon and apparently Killian had abandoned his life here already. It wouldn't be easy to get over her first real crush, but she knew that every girl grew up eventually.

"So, who wants to guess first?" Ruby asked as she sat down at the lunch table with Mary-Margaret and Emma.

"About what?" Emma inquired. Ruby always seemed to get the juiciest gossip around the school first. Probably because she had been working at Granny's all year.

"Who caught mono and had to tell her date that she couldn't go?" Ruby asked as she opened her soda. Ruby's lunch plate should have looked like everyone else's from the cafeteria, who hadn't brought their own lunch, however, where normal burgers rested on the plates of many, Ruby's consisted of the bloodiest burger Emma had ever seen, causing her to gag slightly.

"Why should we care?" Mary-Margaret intoned as she took a bite of her turkey on rye. "Emma has a date with Graham and after last year's fiasco, I wouldn't dream of going."

"No?" Ruby's eyes twinkled as she took a bite of burger. Emma could tell she was dying to spill whatever news she had. "Not even if David Nolan asked me, as I was coming into lunch, if you had a date? You know, now that he doesn't have one."

Mary-Margaret's head bobbed up from its previously dejected position. "Kathryn got sick?"

"You really shouldn't seem so happy about that." Emma laughed and Ruby joined in.

Mary-Margaret glared at the both of them. "Of course I'm not happy she got sick. That's horrible, what kind of person do you think I am?"

"One that wants to run out of this lunchroom and tell David that you'll go to prom with him even if you have to wear last year's dress to do so," Ruby announced. She knew their friend well. Mary-Margaret could only blush in response.

Ruby turned to Emma. "So, you and Graham still going together?"

"Yeah." Emma fiddled with her fries.

"Are you two ever going to go on a real date?" Ruby finished her burger and licked her fingers clean.

"He's mentioned it a few times, but I hate to hurt his feelings. I really don't think of him as anything more than a friend."

Mary-Margaret grasped one of Emma's hands. "It's okay. He'll get over it. I mean there are several girls at school who'd love to go out with him, but right now he thinks he still has a chance with you."

"I don't know why," Emma complained. "I've never encouraged him. Should I just tell him to go to prom without me?"

"No!" Mary-Margaret and Ruby screamed in unison, causing many of the people around them to stop talking and stare.

"Of course, you shouldn't, Emma," Mary-Margaret told her. "At least go to prom with him. If you need to break his heart, at least let him have that."

Emma wasn't sure how to take that advice. If their places were reversed, she would want to know now, but then she had already had the humiliating experience at the Halloween dance to deal with. She just need to find the best way to tell Graham that as much as she cared for him, the two of them were never going to work.

Emma did go to prom with Graham, but she didn't leave with him. When the dance was almost over, she confided her plan to leave Storybrooke after graduation with him.

"So, you're not staying?" Graham looked at her from across their corner table, his hands shoved into the pockets of his tux.

"No. I love Johanna and I am so thankful she took me in all this time, but I just need to go and discover who I am. I've been a foster child for so long that I never had a chance to find my own identity. I've always tried to fit in so some family would love me enough to make me one of them, but it never happened."

Emma stood up and began to pace, her ice blue sheath dress had a train that followed behind her. She began to nibble at one of her nails. How long had she even wished Johanna would broach the subject of adoption. She seemed to care for Emma and had taken care of her these past years, but for some reason even the woman Emma had grown to love and care for did not seem to feel the need to make her part of her family.

"Isn't there anyone else you'll miss other than Johanna?"

Emma swung around and stared at him. "Of course, I'll miss you and Mary-Margaret and Ruby. You have become the only true friends I have ever known."

Graham stood and threw his hands up in exasperation. "Friends? We are all your friends? Well, that's just great. Glad I was just your friend, Emma."

Emma grabbed his arm, exposed by the rolled up sleeves of his shirt. "What do you want me to say, Graham?"

"I don't know." He shook off her arm and raked his hand through his hair. He began to pace himself. "Maybe that you felt something close to what I do. That you've come to care for me. Killian has been out of the picture of a while now. You haven't even talked about him. I just thought that maybe you moved on and could like me even just a little more. At least as more than just a friend."

Emma walked up to him, causing him to stop. She grabbed his hands. "I do care for you, but you've always been my friend. And I love you for that. More than you will ever know. I've never had a guy care for me as you do and that means so much."

Once again, he shook her off and stepped around her. He sat back down in his chair with an air of being defeated. "As much as I love being your friend, I can't do this. Not right now. And I'm not sure ever again."

He rose, grabbed his coat from the back of his chair, took one last glance in her direction and left. Emma wanted to cry. She just wanted him to know that they couldn't be more than friends, but she hadn't wanted to break his heart. It seemed that she had done that anyway. Graham had driven them to the dance at the school and now it seemed she'd have to find a ride home.

She walked around and spotted David and Mary-Margaret on the dance floor. They looked like a couple who was falling in love. She couldn't possibly disturb them for a ride and Ruby and Billy had already left an hour ago. She'd just have to call Johanna to see if she'd be able to pick her up. The first time that Emma would have ever had to do that in all of the dances she had ever gone to. Maybe she should just walk.

Emma was a few blocks from home when she spotted an older Cadillac that had already circled around a few times already. She tried to see the person inside but it was much too dark. This was the second time she had come home from a dance with someone suspicious hanging about.


	23. Chapter 23

**A/N: **Well, here it is. Probably my most anticipated chapter yet. I hope you all enjoy it as much as I enjoyed writing it. It does have a **rating of M** just because of the sexual connotations. Have fun and for all my friends in the U.S. Happy Thanksgiving. I will try to have up the next chapter before then, but I cannot guarantee it, as there is a lot to do over here this week and I am still trying to get Chapter 24 written, as I want to get it just right.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the characters within this story.

**Chapter 23:**

God she was tired. Emma stretched before she sat back in the Bug to drive home. As far as she could tell nothing happened at the town line to cause a fuss, but she felt better for checking it out. Which meant she would either have to go to the station now to fill out the log or go in tomorrow on her day off.

Fighting a yawn, but losing, Emma turned her car in the direction of the station. Her tired mind kept trying to process a thought of something she may have forgotten, but she shook it off. According to her dash it was already past one in the morning.

The drive that normally took ten minutes, took close to twenty with the inclement weather. She entered the darkened station and turned on the lights. They hurt her exhausted eyes. What she wouldn't give for a pair of sunglasses right now. Determined to get this over with, she sat at her desk and pulled out the log book. She jotted down all the relevant details, set it back in the drawer and shut it with a resounding slam.

Emma left and locked up, wondering if Mary-Margaret and Graham were still asleep on the couch. Her eyes popped open. Graham… Killian. She had handcuffed Killian to the bed. How could she have been so stupid as to have forgotten that?

Sleep was suddenly the last thing on her mind. Emma stuffed her keys in her coat and walked to Graham's place. Her car was probably safer at the station. Plus, if she had her car at Graham's apartment over night people, _okay, Grumpy_, would talk. And that was the last thing she needed right now.

Avoiding the drifting snow, Emma walked briskly to Graham's once again wishing she grabbed a heavier coat. What she wouldn't do for a hot cocoa with cinnamon at this moment. Reaching up to the light for the key, Emma tried to listen inside for movement. Nothing. Either Graham was asleep in bed or still at Mary-Margaret's.

She entered quietly. No sign of Graham's coat. She peeked inside his room, but he wasn't there. _Good_. Emma walked to Killian's room and slipped inside. She reached into her pocket for the key to the handcuffs. Pulling it out, she went to unlock them. As she reached out she realized it was already undone. Hands grabbed her and rolled her onto the bed. A long sharp knife was held across her throat.

"Swan?"

She wanted to nod because her tongue was frozen, however she was afraid she'd be cut. His legs were locked around hers and she felt his erection lengthening across her thigh. He definitely slept naked. _Okay one answer fully satisfied_.

"Kill… Killian," she managed to squeak out.

He grinned down at her. It was menacing in its quality. This was a man to be afraid of. Her body trembled. He must have felt it because his eyebrow raised in response.

"You were the one who attached me to my bedpost whilst I slept?"

She slowly nodded. The knife pricked her skin under her neck. She could feel a small droplet of blood run down her throat. "You would have done the same, if the situations were reversed."

His smile faded. "Actually, no. I saw your reaction on the boat when I restrained your arms. I wouldn't have risked it."

He lowered the knife from her neck and set it on the nightstand, his handless arm still holding him suspended over her.

Emma tried to laugh to break the tension. "Knife big enough? Why not a sword?"

His gaze caught hers. The smile that returned to his lips was much more seductive. "Oh, when I jab you with my sword you'll feel it and trust me you will notice the difference," he whispered in her ear as his hips pressed into hers.

Emma gasped at the contact. Sensation shot through her. Her hands which had rested at her sides up until now grabbed onto his naked hips. She surged her own upwards and felt Killian's hiss of breath near her throat.

"You'll be the death of me, Swan." His lips settled on her neck nibbling their way up to her chin.

It wasn't enough for Emma. With one hand traveling down to clasp his ass, her other came up and tangled in his disheveled locks. She pulled his hair until his eyes met hers. His were questioning.

"Kiss me," she pleaded.

He chuckled. "I thought I was."

"Damn you." She crushed her mouth to his. Teeth clashed, lips melded and tongues fought for dominance. Her jean clad leg shifted and wrapped around his hip anchoring him to her.

When their lips separated they were both breathing heavy. His hand brushed against her leather jacket, pushing it to the side. It then snaked its way up under her sweater and caressed her breast.

"You're wearing too many clothes, love. You're dressed for the cold and it is much too warm in here."

Emma's eyes slipped closed as her back arched. His fingers played her nipples like some men played a guitar, pulling vibrations and feelings from her that she hadn't felt in years. Not since Neal.

Her eyes flew open. This wasn't supposed to happen. She needed to ask him questions. However, her traitorous body seemed to argue with her brain.

His hand came up and caressed her cheek with the back of his knuckles. "Swan?"

Blood rushed to her head and she shifted away. "Sorry, Killian. This isn't why I came here."

His eyes flashed. She was unsure of his feelings but she suspected he was more angry at himself than her. "So, why are you here?"

He pushed off the bed and stood. He grabbed his jeans from a nearby chair and slid them on, leaving them unbuttoned. She wished he'd put on a shirt, because then she might be able to unglue her tongue from the roof of her mouth.

If he had caught her eye as a teenager, he did even more than that now. His muscular physique was perfect in all the right places. Places her hands had just been exploring. If anyone said he had gone soft since he lost his hand, Emma would gladly refute the rumors. The matted hair on his chest drew her eyes even more than his muscular body. She watched it descend into his jeans to the very area she had been so desperate for a short time ago. Who was she kidding? She still wanted him now, but if she didn't push the lustful thoughts aside, who knows how long it would be before he answered her questions.

"So, why did you restrain me?"

She looked back up at his face. "I thought I was the one asking the questions?" She at up on the bed, her booted feet resting on the floor.

"So far, I've asked two and you haven't asked any, so let's start with mine." He crossed his arms and legs and leaned back against the wall, cloaking him mostly in the shadows.

Emma walked to the door and turned on the light. She was determined to watch his face during this conversation. She proceeded back to the bed and sat down.

"I came in earlier. I was relieving Graham, since he fell asleep at Mary-Margaret's. I needed a new radio and Ruby suggested I get Graham's spare than the one at the office. I heard you. And when I came in you were having a dream about Milah…" her voice faded on the word.

He stared at her. His face could have been set in stone. "Because I was dreaming about an ex you thought you had enough reason to chain me to my bed?"

Emma jumped at his rough voice, she hadn't realized how tense she was until that moment. She lowered her gaze. "No, of course not."

"Why then?"

"Because you said you loved me." She looked back up at him, challenging him to deny it. "In our dream you were telling her you loved me. You told her to go back to her husband."

"I did." He stepped away from the wall and came toward her. Emma felt like she was being stalked by a black panther with every intention of eating her alive, but she refused to be intimidated.

He stopped in front of her. His knee nudged hers apart. Killian stepped between her parted thighs. Emma couldn't take her eyes off his. A predatory smile appeared on his face as his hand cupped her chin. "Was it so hard to believe?"

She nodded, tears pricking her eyes. He leaned down and pressed his lips to hers. The softness of his lips conveyed all the feelings left unsaid. Her arms wrapped around his neck and he lifted her into his arms off the bed.

"I dreamed of you. Of this," he confessed as their mouths came apart. "This is what helped me get through the hell that was my life for years. Well, this and the thought of destroying Gold," he said with a sheepish grin as he slowly released her enough to have her body slide against his to the floor.

"Was he the one who killed her?" There was no need to say her name. They both knew who she meant.

"Yes." His eyes closed. His hand at her hip tightened. Even years later he was still deeply affected by her death.

"And took your hand in the process." It wasn't a question, thus he had no need to acknowledge the statement. It just had to be said out in the open between them. "Gold knows you are in town."

Killian's eyes opened and he looked down at her, his face serious. "I know. Graham told me about your note, but I knew before that. I had August follow you. He heard everything."

"You had me followed?"

Killian chuckled, but his blue eyes still held a note of graveness. "For your safety. We saw that Gold texted you. I didn't want to take a chance, not with you."

"Thank you."

"Your welcome." A saucy smile reached his lips. His hand reached up and brushed his ear, then tapped his lips. "Perhaps a little more gratitude is in order."

She smiled back at him, her hand reached up and played with his ebony locks. "The thank you should have been sufficient."

He pressed her closer. She had to lean her head back just to watch his face. His eyebrow rose in that sexy way of his. "We are talking about Gold here. You could have been killed. Is that all your life is worth to you?"

"Please," she whispered in his ear. "You couldn't handle it."

His tongue reached out and licked her lobe. "Perhaps it is you who couldn't handle it."

Emma reached up with her other hand and brought his mouth down upon hers in a crushing kiss. His hand swept up into her hair. Emma swayed them around and pressed into his chest until he fell on the bed with her sprawled on top of him, their lips never leaving contact with the other.

"Emma," he sighed as she pulled back. "So, help me if you tell me this is a one time thing as you did back in Annapolis."

Shocked, she stared down at him. "You knew it was me?"

"Not until the next day after I sobered up and we had set sail. I spoke to Liam and he mentioned the blonde I had kissed the night before. He told me it was all he could do to pull me away in my drunken stupor from the wench who had captured my attention for the hour before I passed out."

He rolled them again so now Emma was the one on her back. "The way you kissed, the way you kiss, is something to keep a man warm on cold lonely nights on the sea, love. I begged Liam to let me go back to shore, but we had a mission to complete. A mission that caused me to lose my brother. As much as I wanted to go back for you, I was never so glad that I remained and spent the time I could with my brother before he died."

"I'm so sorry, Killian." She swiped the tears from his eyes. He laid down next to her and she held him close. Her eyes closed and she wished that things had been different. Time had a strange way of twisting itself.


	24. Chapter 24

**A/N: **This chapter took me forever to write. And now with the holidays I am finding even less time in which to write each day. I hope you forgive me. I will try to get my chapters written as soon as I can and posted. I am currently working on the next chapter. My updates may be limited to once a week for a little while until about half way through December when I am caught up on all my shopping and shipping out to everyone. I hope everyone enjoys whatever season you may be celebrating and enjoy this chapter as well.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters. They belong to Once Upon A Time.

**Chapter 24:**

**10 Years Ago**

This had to be the worst month of Emma Swan's life and considering all she had lived through, that said something. Not only had Neal abandoned her and left her to be arrested for a theft he committed, she had been sent from Portland, Oregon to a prison in Phoenix for teenagers who were barely past juveniles. And now this.

In her hand rested a pregnancy test, something she never dreamed she'd need for years to come, if ever. The thing was proof positive that her life had spiraled out of control. How was she supposed to have a baby? She had just barely turned eighteen, she was alone, and now in prison.

Once again, this just proved she couldn't count on anyone but herself. A jailor came up to the bars and announced herself, before she opened them and walked in.

"You got a package. Rules say I have to open it in front of you." She shook it open and inside was a familiar keychain and a key. "Looks like you get a car and a baby when you get out of here."

Emma heard the woman laugh all down the hall after she locked Emma back in her cell. Emma wanted to cry so hard. Life seemed to be going from bad to worse lately. It made her question her decision to leave Storybrooke where at least she had friends.

Of course most of those friends would probably never speak to her again after she left with barely a word to anyone on graduation day. Emma always wondered how long Mary-Margaret waited before going to commencement. They were to meet that morning at Granny's for a celebratory breakfast. Instead, Emma penned out a note to Johanna and left it on her bed and snuck out the window, anxious to finally be on her own. She knew Johanna was upset with her. Emma had called her once and Johanna had just asked her one simple question, why? Emma unfortunately did not have an answer for her. After a brief moment of silence, Emma had just hung up the pay phone and walked away. It had been that very week she had run into Neal Cassidy while stealing a car. The very car, she suspected, was the one that the key belonged to, with the swan keychain attached that Neal had stolen for her.

_ Damnit, life sucked. _

**13 months later…**

"Swan? They release you today, too?"

Emma turned from collecting her meager possessions and saw Brittney, another inmate, approaching. Brittney had been one of the few girls Emma had made friends with inside prison. She also had a baby just a month older than Emma's, who she also put up for adoption.

"Yeah."

"You know where you're going?" Brittney walked with her to the impound lot where Emma still suspected she'd find the yellow VW Bug that she had once stolen.

"No," Emma admitted. She really had no idea where to go from here. The judge who had sentenced her to eighteen months, let her go early so long as she attended some college classes. She had to send her registration and transcripts to the courts to prove that she was following the court mandate.

"I'm heading to Annapolis in Maryland. My brother is an instructor there. He told me that for the next year I was expected to stay with him and I quote," Brittney used her fingers as quotation marks, "away from all criminal activity."

Emma chuckled. She handed over her paperwork and key to the clerk who told her to wait and they would bring the vehicle to the front, where she would have to finish signing all necessary documents.

"At least you have a plan and someone who cares," Emma told her, wishing just a little that someone would care what would happen to her. She saw the yellow Bug head toward them. As much as she appreciated the gesture, Emma wanted to kick that car until her foot hurt. If it wasn't for that car she wouldn't be here right now. Well, the car and Neal Cassidy.

"Hey, why don't you give me a lift. I'll help pay for gas. And you can crash with me and my brother at his place until you figure out where you are going." Brittney shrugged as if she didn't care if Emma agreed or not, but Emma could see that Brittney's eyes pleaded with her to come along. Emma knew that brave look. It usually was on her own face whenever she was scared and didn't want anyone to know it.

Emma studied the girl. They had been as close as people could be in prison, but there was something else. Emma just had a sense that Brittney could really help her and that she was sincere in doing so. Plus, Emma really did not have anywhere else to go.

She nodded. "Why not? Let's go. One last adventure before we confront the real world as actual adults, right?"

Brittney slapped her five. Yeah, they both needed this. They needed to have something to forget what they had just been through. The clerk walked over and handed Emma the key. Brittney took their backpacks and threw them in the backseat, while Emma signed her name on all the required papers. The girls got in the car and breathed a sigh of relief or anticipation, even Emma wasn't sure which, when the car started.

Emma might not know where life was going to take her, but right now, it was leading her in the direction of the one guy she had never forgotten, if he was still in town.

Killian stared at the invitation in his hand. The one Liam had hidden away. Unfortunately, Killian had just found it a few hours ago and it taunted him. It was a cordial invitation for Killian to attend the one wedding he wished to stop, Milah's.

She had delayed the original wedding, calling it off after he proposed at the Officer's Ball, much to her mother's chagrin. He though that Milah had set all thoughts of Gold aside. She had even moved in with him on off-campus housing at the barracks, which his brother Liam, had to acquire for him. Then just a few months later, with just a short note of goodbye, she was gone. In the letter, she had told him her mother was ill and she'd be back soon.

Two months later he received a certified letter with the ring he had given her. Gold had helped pay for her mother's medical bills and had been there for her throughout her mother's illness. She had fallen in love with him. Milah said she hoped Killian understood. He never did.

Even now, as he stared at the offending stationery, he still did not understand. He didn't understand why he didn't care enough to go up there and put a stop to it.

That didn't mean he couldn't get rip roaring drunk in the meantime to forget all about it. _Oh, yes_! He had plans for that weekend and none of them required him to dress up and put a smile on his face that he didn't mean.

He called one of his buddies from the Academy and planned to meet a few of them that night at one of the local bars. Sure, come Monday, he'd have to be ship shape. He had a mission to be prepared for with his brother. Their first official assignment together. But Monday was a long way off and until Sunday night when he would have to think about sobering up, he was a free man.

Brittney and Emma reached Annapolis Saturday afternoon. It took four days of driving and sleeping in the cramped car, but they made it. Emma stood outside the Bug and stretched while Brittney went in to talk to her brother.

When she waved at Emma from the front door, Emma slowly approached the apartment, as she wasn't sure of her reception. Brittney's brother looked a lot like the girl herself. Tall, sandy brown hair and kind chocolate eyes. Brittney smiled as Emma came up to them, but her brother, Matt, seemed slightly more wary. However, he extended his hand in a friendly gesture.

"So, you're Emma. Brittney asked if you could stay for a while."

Emma shook his hand and gave him a slight smile. "If you don't mind. I'd really appreciate it. A week, at most. I promise."

"Don't make promises you can't keep," he warned in a brotherly sort of fashion, which Emma found slightly reassuring, despite the opposing presence he presented with his arms crossed over his muscular chest. "I'd rather not know I forced you to sleep in your car. I'm shipping out Monday anyway. I'd feel better if I knew that Brittney wasn't alone in the house while I was gone."

He looked between the two girls, his eyes piercing. "If the two of you can refrain from any criminal behavior, I would appreciate it. Especially since I might be gone for a while. My next assignment is pretty hush hush at this point. Stands to reason some of us might not come back from this one."

Emma really didn't know what to say. She never had to deal with someone who said death was something around the corner. Matt seemed so casual about it too, like it was a normal part of everyday life and maybe to him and his family it was.

A phone ringing down the hall caught all their attention. Matt walked back to the kitchen to answer it, calling over his shoulder, "I have to get this, it might be important. Why don't the two of you head upstairs to your room."

"So, you staying?" Brittney asked.

"Yes. Thanks for asking him for me."

Brittney threw her arm around Emma's shoulders. "No problem. Now let me show you our room. I get the top bunk."

"So, what do you want to do tonight?" Brittney asked as they shared a pizza later that night.

Matt had left shortly after they arrived to go meet with some friends at a bar. Apparently one of his friends was have a tough time this weekend and hadn't left the bar he had plopped himself in since the night before.

"What's there to do around here?" Emma inquired taking a drink of her soda.

"Just about everything when you are near a base. Trust me, I grew up on these things. My dad was career military and Matt followed in his combat boots." Brittney threw her crust back in the box and swiped her hands across her jean clad legs.

Emma couldn't help but laugh. Brittney may have had a family but she was as much in search of a home as Emma was. They were very much kindred spirits in that regard, especially after Brittney told her she had been raised by an aunt after her mother died when she was fourteen. Matt had just joined the military the year before and her father had been overseas when Brittney's mother had been hit by a car on the way home from the grocery store. Thus, leading Brittney into trouble. Anything to try to get her father's attention, which she had been unsuccessful at thus far.

"Hey. I have an idea," Brittney said, her eyes lighting up and a sly grin coming over her face. "Why don't we spy on my brother and his friends. They are at the local bar. It'll be fun."

"Won't we get in trouble?" Emma was concerned. The last thing she needed was to get on Matt's bad side and get thrown back on the street when she had barely just moved in. Let alone do something to get her thrown back in jail after she had just gained an early release.

"Nah. It's a military bar, so long as you are over eighteen they let you in. they won't serve you, but they'll let you in." Brittney started to clean up their dinner. "C'mon. We can play some pool and maybe prank my brother and his friends."

Emma agreed and they quickly changed into some dressier clothes, which for them was some clean jeans and cute tops. Brittney wore some heels, but Emma, who didn't have much to choose from, stuck with her knee-high boots. If she had to fight off some drunk sailor she at least wanted to have mobility.

The bar wasn't like other she had been in with Neal. It wasn't raunchy and dirty. Everyone seemed to be grouped together and just there having a good time. Brittney dragged her to a small empty table in the back by the pool tables. They ordered some sodas and nachos.

"There they are," Brittney told her as she pointed out the group where her brother sat.

"I wonder which one is his friend who's having the rough weekend," Emma speculated. The group of guys had about fifteen members so it was hard to determine who they were trying to cheer up.

"Doesn't matter, let's have a good time. Who knows how long we have before we're both working and have no time for ourselves." Their drinks were delivered and Brittney pointed to a couple of guys a few tables over. "And there are a couple of lonely sailors trying to catch our attention."

Emma looked over at the two blonde sailors who were smiling at the two of them. They raised their drinks in salute. Even if Emma was interested in them, a guy was the last thing she needed right now. Guys led to trouble. She found that out the hard way, on multiple occasions.

"The last thing I am interested in right now is a guy," Emma huffed. "The last one gave me enough trouble to last a lifetime."

Brittney stood and grabbed her drink. "Okay, but you are missing out. And if you eat all the nachos, you're paying."

"Whatever," Emma called out to her retreating friend.

Emma spent the better part of two hours sitting there at their table alone. Well, not the whole time, as several guys had taken the opportunity to come over and introduce themselves. Emma turned them all down and sent them packing, many with their tails between their legs with her condemning looks and sarcastic comments.

After downing about four sodas, she had to go to the ladies room. When she came out she spotted Brittney over at the pool table near where she had been sitting. She waved Emma over. Brittney's brother was off to one side of the table holding a cue stick, while a dark haired man was walking around the table, a brunette almost superimposed on his denim clad hip, while whispering in his ear.

Emma took in the couple as she walked forward. The guy was someone who she would have definitely have been interested in if she was looking for a guy, _which she was not_. His slim figure was filled out in all the right places. Muscles creeping out from under his tight t-shirt. His pants hung low on his hips and hugged his butt. _Stop drooling, Swan_, she reprimanded herself. The woman, however, was someone who much reminded her of Milah from high school. Pretty, superficial, and dumb as a post. Okay, so Milah hadn't been dumb, just a dumbass, who tortured her at every opportunity. Her dark hair hung down her back. Her shirt about as low cut as one could get without actually having your boobs hang out. And well, this woman's boobs were straining to do just that. Her skirt may have been long, but it clung to her body like a second skin. Emma didn't know why but she just hated her.

Deciding to ignore them, she sidled up to the table. "So, what are you boys playing?"

The dark haired guy stumbled slightly and slowly turned around. Obviously, he was drunk and the brunette appeared to be the only thing keeping him upright.

It was his eyes that caught her first. The bluest of blues looked back at her. His tongue slid back and played with an incisor, pure lust distorting his face as he gazed back at her.

It couldn't be, but it was. She was in his town after all. Killian Jones, stood before her, in the flesh, and he seemed to have no clue as to who she was.


	25. Chapter 25

**A/N: **I can't tell you how excited I was about this chapter and the next one, especially the next one, as I wrote that in two hours the night before last at 2am. I usually do my best writing late at night, but I don't always get the chance because I have three young boys. Anyway, I hope all of you enjoy the chapter as much as I did. Thank you for all the favorites and follows. I appreciate each and every one of them, and don't even get me started on reviews. They just make my day.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters within this story.

**Chapter 25:**

Emma left a short time after Killian's revelation. Graham had come stumbling through the front door about three am, waking her from her slumber. Her head had rested on Killian's chest, his arm wrapped around her, his hair wrapped in her hair. Killian tried to convince her to stay but she insisted that she had to get home to help Mary-Margaret come morning. It was the last thing she wanted to do, but the first instinct her mind turned to in this situation, run.

Mary-Margaret was asleep in her room when stumbled in, her curtain drawn around her bed. The last thing Emma wanted to do was talk about her evening. Going up to her room she flopped on the bed, only having removed her coat and boots, and fell into an exhausted sleep.

Sometime later, she heard Mary-Margaret's sing-song voice coming from the kitchen. Emma turned over and looked at her alarm clock, which read twenty minutes past eight. _Gah_! She needed more sleep, but if Mary-Margaret was up Emma knew she better go down and help or Mary-Margaret would do all the chores herself.

Rubbing her hands across her sleep deprived eyes, Emma stood and stumbled to the bathroom. After going through her morning absolutions, she went downstairs, still in her clothes from the night before.

"Late night, Emma?" Mary-Margaret called out from the kitchen.

"You have no idea." Emma walked into the small kitchen and pulled down a mug. Cocoa was so in order, followed by a strong cup of espresso.

Just then Emma heard a toilet flush. Her eyes shot over to Mary-Margaret who was blushing furiously.

"I just might," Mary-Margaret admitted, as she buried her head up against her own cup of cocoa.

"Mary-Margaret," Emma scolded. "I so hope that is David."

"Well, of course it is," Mary-Margaret admonished, lowering her cup. "Who else would it be?"

Emma held up her hand in self-dense and laughed. "I wouldn't venture to guess. I guess that means you hear me come in last night."

"David did. He was worried about you when I told him you had gone out for Graham. He stayed up until he heard you come in." Mary-Margaret began to scrub an invisible mark on the counter with her fingertip. Emma was well aware that Mary-Margaret knew that Emma laughed at people who worried about her. She had been on her own for so long already, it was unusual for her to experience feeling that someone cared.

Just then David Nolan walked into the kitchen. A goofy grin lined his face as he walked over to Mary-Margaret and pecked her on the cheek.

"So, thanks _Dad_ for waiting up," Emma teased as she punched him gently in the arm.

"Someone has to watch out for you. From what I hear you don't watch out for yourself quite enough." He sat down in one of the bar stools and Mary-Margaret handed him a cup of tea. "Mm. Earl Gray, my favorite."

Emma made her cocoa and placed in a spoonful of instant coffee into the brew, groaning with delight as she took a sip of the hot liquid. "This tastes so good right now. Hope you don't mind but I'm gonna finish this upstairs and take a shower."

She glance between Mary-Margaret and David, who now sat next to each other holding hands and reading from the same newspaper. Nope. They were not going to notice if she left one bit.

Killian woke with a start. There was a persistent knocking on his door. Pushing himself out of bed, he shuffled over to his door and opened it. Graham stood there looking almost as bad as Killian felt.

"Morning," Graham mumbled.

"Back at you, mate," Killian returned as he rested against the open door.

"I overslept. I'm heading into the station. You need anything?" Graham continued buttoning his half opened shirt and vest.

"No. I'm good. I have to head over and relieve Smee. August is spending the weekend with his father."

"Be careful will you. Gold isn't just going to take your arm the next time he gets a hold of you." Graham glanced up from his buttons, as he finished, glaring at his old friend.

Killian rubbed his ear. No, Gold had much more nefarious plans for him should they ever cross paths. "I'll do my best. Emma coming in today?"

"No. She has the day off. I think she and Mary-Margaret had plans to go shopping or something like that." Graham shoved his hands in his pockets and shrugged. "Gotta go. I'll bring back some food from Granny's later."

"Sounds great, but if I'm not here, go ahead and eat. Don't know when I'll be back. Gold seems to take perverse pleasure in collecting money right around the holidays. I think he sees it as a way to make people remember not to be too happy." His own arms crossed over his chest to keep him from wanting to hit something at the mention of Mr. Gold and his hatred of the holiday season.

Graham shook his head sadly. "You have to put a stop to his machinations."

"I'm trying. Trust me on that, mate. It's not easy." Killian reached out his hand and shook Graham's when he grasped it. "Thanks for helping me. You and your family have always been there for mine and there is nothing I wouldn't do to repay you."

"Even if I asked you to stay away from Emma?" Graham inquired sincerely.

Killian blinked. Hardly ever was he at a loss for words, but now was one of those times.

"Thought so." Graham gave him a sheepish smile and turned to go.

It took Killian a minute to process all Graham said. He couldn't believe Graham just asked him to stay away from Emma. If anyone knew how he felt about her it was Graham, but Killian also knew how Graham felt about her too. He ran after Graham. He slammed his hand against the front door of the apartment, preventing Graham from leaving.

"I would die before I let anything happen to Emma. If I truly believed that her life would be better without my presence, I'd leave town the moment Gold received his comeuppance. But, I won't," Killian proclaimed.

Killian ran his hand through his unruly hair. Graham stood before him, his stance one ready for battle, his hands fisted at his sides. The last thing Killian wanted was to fight his friend over a woman, even if that woman happened to be Emma.

"Get out of my way, Killian. I have work to do," Graham demanded roughly.

"As do I, but this has yet to be settled." He could feel the rage bubbling to the surface. So much anger, that all he wished to do was slam his good hand against a wall until it bled.

"No, it hasn't. However, we are at an impasse. We both care about Emma. I just don't want her hurt." Graham crossed his arms and glared at Killian.

"And I will do all in my power to see that she isn't. I have people who I employ watching over her every movement. Gold may well go after her to hurt me, and I refuse to let that happen." Killian stepped away from the door and began to pace. "In fact, I believe he has already threatened her. Thus the note she left for you."

Graham walked to the door and held the handle. "If she gets hurt because of you, Jones, I swear on everything I hold dear to destroy you."

Killian whipped around and faced his friend. "Not before I destroy myself."

Graham stared him down for a good minute before he nodded. He grabbed his jacked from the coat rack and turned to leave. "I believe you would."

Killian stood there rooted to the spot after Graham left. His jaw ached and he realized he had been clenching it for the better part of a half hour, as he had talked with Graham. If this had been some sort of test, he was pretty sure he passed, but definitely not with the flying colors he was so used to having. Now he just had to keep his promise not only to Graham but to himself. And that meant he had to get ready and relieve Smee from his post. He was so close to having enough proof on Gold he could taste the victory on his tongue.

Emma had met up with Henry, who was off from school and gone shopping. People were excited about the start of the holiday season and milled around the snow-lined streets shopping for holiday presents.

Henry had purchased Regina a new pair of earrings and a robe. Apparently, he had snuck away and purchased Emma a present as well. Emma was beyond excited and kept pestering him about what the present could be. She hadn't celebrated Christmas since she lived with Johanna, all those years ago.

Emma had seen a pair of shoes that Ruby would love and asked for them to set aside for her to purchase later, as Ruby had chosen that moment to walk in arm in arm with Dr. Whale. In Emma's bags, she acquired a monogrammed handkerchief for David, though she planned to now tease him the "D" was for Dad. She, also, bought Mary-Margaret a beautiful sweater set and a silk bra and matching panties, which Emma suspected would end up being another present for David. There was also a new vest for Graham and a video game for Henry. And tucked beneath all of that was a beautifully framed drawing. The majestic figure of a brig sailing the high seas, was so magically rendered it could have been a photograph. It was titled "Jolly Roger". She thought it appropriate for the man who carried the nickname Hook in the navy.

It was probably too much and she should return it. She didn't even know if he had a place of his own in which to hang it, but, when she saw it she just knew Killian had to have it. Yeah, it was definitely too soon for presents in this… whatever this was that they had. She should take it back. No, she'd wrap it and just leave it at Graham's house with Killian's name on it.

"You staying for dinner, kid?" She asked Henry to distract herself from her inner struggle.

Henry looked up at her as she fished around for her keys to the apartment. "For tacos? You bet!"

"Mary-Margaret, we're back. Apparently, tacos are not a big seller in Storybrooke," she called out before she stopped dead in her tracks. She reached over and grabbed Henry, covering his eyes.

"Why are you guys in bed?" He asked, before she completely blocked his vision.

Mary-Margaret pulled the sheets up and covered herself blushing furiously. While David just grinned, looking between Mary-Margaret and Emma and Henry.

"I was… I was resting," Mary-Margaret stammered as Emma led Henry over to the kitchen.

"And I was trying to help her…rest," David said with a laugh, as Emma glanred over her shoulder at them.

"You know you could put a sock on the door or send a text or something. It's not hard," Emma scolded them.

"Oh, it was definitely hard," Mary-Margaret said before she covered her mouth in shock.

Emma could feel her mouth opening and closing, but no sound was coming out. In her head she could hear two voices. One sounded remarkably like Mary-Margaret screaming her own name in disbelief. The other sounded like Ruby congratulating her for having the guts to say it. Neither sounded like Emma, who was too traumatized by the whole escapade. It wasn't like she had parents of her won to have dealt with this situation… well, ever.

"You two do whatever. I'm making tacos," Emma finally choked out. David and Mary-Margaret's giggles followed behind her statement. If Emma wasn't so embarrassed by the whole predicament with Henry there, she might have just laughed along, happy her friend was showing the gumption to actually find her own happiness despite all life threw at her.

If Emma had been that brave years ago, she and Killian might have found a different path than the one they were on. She knew she had left a big opportunity slip away when she let Liam take Killian home to sober up all those years ago.


	26. Chapter 26

**A/N: **The way I think this is going to play out is that there is only a few more chapters left to this fanfic. The reunion is only a couple of weeks away and that was supposed to be the endgame of the story, though I have already planned out the ending and some of you may love it and some of you may hate it. I really hope all of you enjoy this chapter as much as I enjoyed writing it. Thank you one and all.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters within this story, okay maybe just a couple, but for the most part let's just say I don't.

**Chapter 26:**

**9 years ago**

"Hook," Emma stammered.

Killian unsteadily sauntered over to her and placed his left hand to her face, cupping her chin. "So, you know who I am. What's your name, lass?"

Emma led him over to her small table and helped Killian into a chair. She gave him a dazzling smile, amused still by the fact that he was drunk enough not to recognize her.

"Uh-uh," she denied him.

"So, we are just two ships passing in the night then?" He inquired with a sly grin on his face.

Emma leaned into him, her breasts brushing up to his muscled chest, her hand skimming across his thigh, as she whispered in his ear, "Passing closely, I hope."

His breath caught. His fingers trailed across her waist as she pulled away, once a waitress arrived with a half-full bottle of rum and two glasses, setting them on their miniscule table. Her body tingled everywhere they had touched. She sat in her chair and poured them both a glass of rum.

She watched him swirl and sniff the contents before throwing it down his throat, like a parched man. Emma took a careful sip and winced as it burned all the way down into her stomach. She watched as he filled her glass further and refilled his own. There was no way she could convince herself to consume anymore than a few sips of the potent liquid. Killian, on the other hand, drank it like water. Actually, Emma didn't know many people who chugged back water like that either.

She had never seen Killian drink, especially not like this. Something serious must have happened for him to be acting like this. In all honest, Emma just wanted to sit him down to talk, to find out what happened. If she had her way they would be curled up on a couch somewhere, his head laying upon her lap, as she stroked his hair, letting him know that she was there whenever he wanted to confide in her. What she wouldn't give to have had someone offer her the same opportunity when she had needed it.

"So, what is a beautiful lass like yourself doing in a joint like this one?"

His question startled her out of her reverie. She gave him a shy smile and reached out to capture his hand before he could raise the glass once again to his lips. She intertwined their fingers, her thumb rubbed against the back of his hand.

"I came with a friend."

"A good friend?" His eyebrow shot up, as his hand clenched.

"A girl friend."

His hand relaxed and a smile touched his lips. "Ah. The best kind."

"You wouldn't happen to be jealous would you?" She asked him intrigued by his answer.

"Only if it had been a male friend, love." He pulled their twined hands to his lips and proceeded to kiss each of her fingers.

Emma shivered and she was anything but cold. His smoldering eyes met hers over their hands.

"Come home with me."

She didn't know what to say to that request. Or was it a demand? The way it came possessively through his lips it could have been meant either way. If she went back with him she would finally have something more than just heartache to remember Killian by, however, if she was unable to sneak away before he sobered up, she wasn't sure if she could face him.

"How about another drink," she stalled. She pulled her fingers out of his and poured more of the amber liquid into his glass so it almost reached the top. His eyes locked with hers before he lifted it and threw his head back and inhaled the potent liquor.

After he settled the glass on the table, he stood still unsteady on his feet. "Dance with me."

He extended his hand. She looked up at him. "You can barely stand."

A toothy grin appeared and he had the audacity to wink at her. "Then you'll just have to hold me up."

Emma reached out and grasped his hand. He tugged her forward and she caught herself in case they might take a tumble to the floor.

"Hey there, sailor," she reprimanded with a teasing lilt to her voice. "Don't be too hasty."

He wrapped a strand of her hair around his fingers as the other clenched her hip. His breath touched her ear, caressing it as he spoke, "Hasty is the last thing on my mind right now, love. I plan to take you nice and slow."

Emma shivered. The image that played in her head at his comment came on strong, as she could see the two of them naked in a bed and not coming up for air until he had to leave port.

She allowed him to lead her over to the small section of floor left open for people wishing to dance. Only one other couple remained, as the night was getting late. He took her inside his arms, pressing her body to his.

"We're still talking about dancing, aren't we?" Emma shyly asked.

She may have no longer been a virgin, or unaware of the way the world worked, but flirting was still a relatively new thing for her.

"Were we talking about dancing? How could I have forgotten," he told her with a sly grin.

At moments like this Emma almost questioned whether Killian was as drunk as she believed. His arms flexed around her as the music changed to an upbeat rhythm. Emma tried to push him away gently, but he held on tight.

"Don't you want to dance with a devilishly handsome sailor, love?"

"Why, you know one?" She teasingly asked him.

He stopped the rocking motion that they had engaged in and stared down at her, his expression serious. She was afraid she hurt his feelings and wished she had kept her mouth shut. Instead one of his hands came up and fisted in her long blonde hair.

"Gods, you're beautiful."

Before Emma had a chance to process that statement, his mouth crashed down on hers. Her hands, which had casually rested on his hips, rose and rubbed across his muscled chest, exploring every dip and contour his tight shirt exposed.

Neal may have been slightly older than Killian, but his body had been no where close to what Killian's offered. It was like comparing a boy to a man. A dangerous man who could easily eat her up and spit her out.

Emma heard herself moan and it startled her. She began to pull back and surprisingly Killian let her.

"I'm sorry, love. I shouldn't have done that." He released his hold on her, however, she clenched her fingers into his t-shirt and yanked him back.

"Don't apologize for something you have no intention of regretting," she said earnestly.

His hands cupped her face. His blue eyes radiated intensity and Emma quaked under their scrutiny.

"I thought we were going to dance," she told him trying to lighten the serious mood that had come over them.

"As you wish." He gave her a slight bow of his head, before his fingers traced a path across her swollen lips.

Emma almost wished she had the guts to nip at his fingers and pull them into her mouth. But no sooner had she had that thought then his hands once again settled upon her hips. His right hand snuck down and cupped her ass, as he pulled her flush against him.

Emma chewed her bottom lip, as her cheek lay upon his chest. He seemed to be sobering up and that meant soon he might recognize her. Deciding to just enjoy the moment, she closed her eyes as a ballad played on the bar's jukebox.

Her arms reached around and splayed along his back. When the music began to pick up again, he spun them slightly, which startled Emma, making her think he might have lost his footing. Her hand snaked down trying to hold herself steady in case they fell.

"Trying to get in my pants so soon, love? I usually don't pillage and plunder on the first date, but I'm game if you are," he teased her.

It was then Emma realized that the fingers of her right hand had slipped below the waistband of his jeans. And even worse, her one finger hand slid under his briefs connecting with warm skin underneath. She quickly removed her hand and stepped out of his embrace.

For once, he didn't sway. _Shit! He was sobering up_. She decided to change the subject.

"So, what has you in here this Saturday night?"

He stood there a foot away. His hands jammed into his back pockets. His jaw clenching and unclenching. "A woman."

"The one you were with earlier?" She tried to ask casually, as she strolled past him in an attempt to return to their table.

"Earlier?"

Emma looked over her shoulder. He was still where she left him. One hand messaging his temple. She really needed to get her purse and coat and leave.

She looked around, but didn't see Brittney anywhere. Matt was off at the table where she had seen him earlier in the evening. However, the group he had been with dissipated. Instead he was sitting there talking to a slightly older man with light brown curly locks. This guy exuded power. _He must be one of the superior officers_.

The man looked up at her. His piercing blue eyes stopped her in her tracks. They were Killian's eyes. Just that wasn't Killian.

"Where are you going, love?"

Emma felt Killian's hand wrap around her arm. She glanced behind her at him. She waited for him to call her Swan, or Emma, or whatever other nickname he might have called her in high school, but it never came.

"I need to get home." She wasn't even sure why, yet even she heard the sadness in her tone.

"Come home with me for a nightcap."

"I can't, Killian. Look this was just a one-time thing. I need to go." She shook off his hand and grabbed her purse and coat.

"Killian."

Both Emma and Killian turned to the man Emma had seen earlier, who now approached their table.

"Damn it," she heard Killian mutter.

He stepped around her, so he stood blocking her view of his brother's approach. "I want to see you again before I ship out."

One of his hands came up and he brushed the back of his knuckles across her cheek. As wetness spread, she realized she had been crying. "I can't."

His jaw once again clenched in obvious agitation. He swiped the almost empty bottle of rum from the table and chugged the contents. She watched in fascination as his throat bobbed. Even when he did something as simple as swallowing he could make her turn to putty. What kind of hold did this guy have over her?

He slammed the bottle back down after he emptied the contents and wiped his lips with a quick scrub of his hand. His red-rimmed blue eyes met hers. Apparently drink and exhaustion were catching up with him.

"Then at least let me have this."

His arm snaked around her waist as he stepped forward invading her space. His eyes closed before his lips gently covered hers in the sweetest of kisses Emma had ever received.

Her own eyes fluttered shut, as she allowed him to slowly deepen the kiss. She reached around and grabbed his arm, as their lips melted together, dropping her purse and coat to the floor. She pulled his arm forward so both sets of their hands could be between them, fingers intertwined. When she heard him moan, she couldn't help but want this to go on forever, yet it wasn't meant to be. Killian's body began a slow decent to the floor.

"I've got him," a voice said from behind Killian. It was the guy with Killian's eyes, his brother, Liam. He had to have been there the entire time. Emma blushed furiously. He gave her a slight smile as he and Matt draped Killian's limp arms around their shoulders.

"Thank you," Emma told him.

"No. Thank you, Emma." He bowed his head slightly before he and Matt turned and dragged Killian out of the bar.

Liam knew who she was. She could only hope that Matt had told him her name and that he didn't really know she was Emma Swan from Storybrooke.

Liam turned to Matt as they exited the bar. His expression brooding. "Tell the crew we ship out come morning."

"Sir?" Matt asked with confusion. "The men were told they had until Monday before we shipped out."

"There is nothing they can do on Sunday that they haven't done already, except attend church. And right now, they can pray to the devil we know, the majestic sea, or the God they don't and hope that his good grace will prevent them from being court marshaled come Monday morning."

Liam glared at Matt furiously. He needed to get his brother to sea before he sobered up. As much as he appreciated Emma Swan's help in limiting his brother's bout with debauchery, he could let Killian become embroiled with another woman, especially that one. One more heartache might just destroy his brother. And while Milah might have injured Killian's heart, Emma had the potential to rip it from his very chest.

"Aye, Sir. I'll inform the crew once we have Hook in his cabin." Matt gave him a sloppy salute as he juggled with half of Killian's weight.

"Thank you, Buzzard. I'm appreciative that you decided to assist us on this mission. I know your sister only just returned."

The two men hailed a cab and Liam laid his brother across his lap, as Matt sat up front with the cabbie. He smoothed his brother's dark locks, just as he had when Killian had been a lad and had a nightmare. He would do anything for his brother, even if that meant he had to separate him from the woman that Liam suspected that Killian loved more than his life itself.

"Emma is staying with her, Sir. I think it will be good for the both of them. I have Smee assigned to watch over them while we are gone." Matt glanced over the headrest and looked down at Killian.

"For once, I agree that Smee is probably the best man for the job. His bubbling ways, are sure to foster friendship with the girls and keep them out of whatever trouble may find them."

Matt nodded at him and retuned facing forward. Liam stared out his own window, anxious to be aboard ship. He would have to talk with the crew and convince them that Killian must not know they left earlier than planned. Liam had to protect his brother at all costs, even if it cost him what little friendship the two brothers possessed.


	27. Chapter 27

**A/N: **When I started writing this chapter I was completely flabbergasted as to where to go with it. After it was written, I thought, well I guess everyone who follows this story should be excited because it looks like I will have to write a few more chapters than planned. I hope all of you enjoy. And for all of you who celebrate holidays around this time, I wish all of you a happy holiday season. As for my followers around the Philippines, I hope all of you are safe.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the Once Upon a Time characters. Just borrowing them for a little while.

**Chapter 27:**

Emma yawned. If this day got any more boring she was going to waste away in her chair at the Sheriff's Station. Henry was back at school. Mary-Margaret was spending most of her free time with David, who had permanently moved into a room at Granny's until his divorce was final. Ruby was either working or out with Dr. Whale. Graham seemed to be avoiding her and she had no idea why.

Even Killian seemed to have dropped out of sight. And crime had basically been non-existent. Everyone in Storybrooke seemed to be taking this whole time for peace on Earth, goodwill towards man thing seriously. The worst thing she did that whole day was go searching for Pongo after he ran off from Dr. Hopper.

She spun absently in her chair. A slight movement off near the interrogation room caught her eye and she slammed her feet down almost knocking her butt to the floor.

Who the hell was here? Suddenly, Emma realized that someone had been watching her. She took her gun out of the desk and tucked it in the waistband of her jeans. She approached the room quietly, acting as if she was only going to the filing cabinet nearby. She turned the knob with slow precision and promptly fell on her face as the door was jerked open from the inside.

"Shit. I'm sorry, Emma."

Hands reached out for her. She smoothed back her hair and took a hold of one of the offered hands. When she was once again upright, she stared at August Booth in contempt.

"What the hell, August?"  
>He gave her a thin grin. "Sorry. You weren't supposed to know I was here."<p>

"Well, apparently, you suck as a covert operative." She straightened her shirt and took the gun out of her pants, as August doubled over in laughter.

When he calmed down, he wiped tears from his face. "I have to tell my boss that one, he'll have a field day."

"Quiet, August." Emma hushed him. "Someone is coming in. I better go see who it is."

Emma turned to leave when she was jerked back against August's chest, his hand clamped over her mouth. She glared over her shoulder at him. His stern expression one she had never seen before. As a matter of fact, this was the most serious she had ever seen him.

"Be very quiet," he whispered in her left ear.

They could hear a couple of people out in the front office. Emma heard papers shuffle and chairs scrape against the floor, the noise akin to nails on a chalkboard, making the small hairs on Emma's neck prickle. Whoever was out there was looking for something.

"The deputy doesn't appear to be here, Mack."

"Well, I'm not going back to Gold empty-handed. The blonde bitch of a deputy has to be here somewhere or else the place wouldn't be unlocked. Search all the rooms."

"I ain't going in no ladies room, Mack."

"I'll check the damn ladies room if it make you feel better. Just start looking."

Emma wasn't sure what to do. The two guys were bound to find her and August soon. August tugged her back further inside the interrogation room. He held a finger to his lips letting her know to remain quiet as he silently crept to the door and shut it.

She watched as he pulled out a pocket knife. He set a chair under the vent near the ceiling and pried loose the screen. He waved her over. Emma glanced at the door, hearing heavy footfalls approach the room.

August held up his cupped hands for her to step into. He hoisted her up and inside the vent. August pulled his cell phone from behind him and handed it up to her.

"Call Hook, after you crawl out. At the junction, turn left. It will lead to the back of the station. Careful when you jump down by the door. Try not to make too much noise. Once you're out call," he whispered hurriedly.

Emma nodded and took the phone, tucking it into her jeans pocket. August placed the vent screen back in place and hopped off the chair as Emma heard the door open.

"Who the hell are you?" Demanded the voice that belonged to Mack.

"Are you one of the other deputies? I've been waiting for the blonde chic to come back forever. She promised me some dinner," Emma heard August whine.

"Gold is not going to like this."

"Oh! Is he the Sheriff?" August asked. "I really should make a complaint about the service here."

"Gold is not the God-damn sheriff, you idiot."

Emma squeezed her eyes shut and began to crawl down the vent as she heard the two men exchange fists. She needed to get out of here. She had no idea why Gold sent his lackeys after her but there was no way that it was because he wanted to share a cup of tea.

Once Emma was outside, she pulled out August's phone. Searching through his contacts she found the one labeled Hook and dialed. It rang twice before he answered.

"August. What's going one? Where's Emma?" An anxious Killian asked.

"It's Emma," she informed him.

"Emma! Are you okay?"

Emma looked around and quickly made way for her car, hoping August would distract them enough not to realized that it was leaving the parking lot. She ducked behind bushes and kept below the windows. She was glad she had kept her keys in her pocket today instead of in her desk or jacket.

"I'm fine," she whispered. "I'm not sure about August. He distracted some of Gold's men so I could get out of the station."

"Well, they are currently occupied in a round of fisticuffs with our mutual friend, so get out of there."

"How do you… Oh, never mind. Thanks. I'm gonna make a run for it and get in my car," she said getting ready to run.

"Wait."

"What? Why?" She held still. It seemed Killian had some way to see inside the station. "Have you been spying on me?"  
>"Okay. Go."<p>

Emma ran. She shoved the phone in her back pocket as she unlocked the Bug and jumped inside. She started the car and quickly pulled away. Emma tugged the phone from her pocket.

"You still there?" She asked Killian.

"Aye."

"I don't know where to go. There could be more at Mary-Margaret's or they could go there next." Emma didn't want anything to happen to her friend. She really needed to call her.

"Drive to Henry's castle. I'll pick you up there."

"Okay. I need to call Mary-Margaret and warn her," she told him as she turned to head away from town.

"Use August's phone. It's untraceable."

"Aye, aye, Captain," she mockingly replied.

"Never official made Captain, lass, but you can be my subordinate all you want. Just get here in one piece."

Emma heard a car engine roar to life in the background. "I'll try, Killian."

She hung up and dialed Mary-Margaret's cell. In just one ring Mary-Margaret answered. After Emma gave her a quick summary of what happened at the station, Mary-Margaret told her to be careful and stay safe. Emma gave her the same assurance she gave Killian.

As she pulled up to the play area, she texted Graham, informing him to get in touch with Killian, but she was safe. She wasn't sure of how involved Graham was to whatever Killian was up to.

She parked and ducked down when a black SUV with tinted windows appeared. There was a wrap on her window. Emma looked up to see Killian. Relief flooded over her. She opened the door and got out, only to be enveloped in his arms. After a minute he relaxed and pulled back. His eyes bore into hers.

"What's going on?" She demanded.

"Why, love?" He seemed to be trying to lighten the mood with his words, but the way he stared back at her made her even more scared than when she had been at the station.

"If you stare at me any harder you are going to drill a hole in my head."

"Sorry, love. I'm just relieved that you're alright." He tugged her toward the vehicle he arrived in. "We need to get out of here."

He opened the door for her and she stepped in. He slammed it shut and ran around to his side. He got in and started the car. Emma watched fascinated as he drove. Despite missing his left hand, he seemed to do things with ease. So much so, that until moments like these, Emma forgot he wasn't whole.

They drove over to the cannery by the docks. Killian pressed a discrete button on the dash of the car and a door opened. One that if you were not aware it was there you would have missed. She knew she had in all the times she had patrolled around the docks.

"Cool," she couldn't help but mutter as they descended down a ramp once inside.

"Mines run all around this town. Some more noted that others. This one was one that many people deemed unsafe and closed. August, David and I worked on it and converted it a couple of years back," he told her as he parked.

"David?" She turned to look at him. She would have never guessed he was involved.

"Yeah. He and August were converting it before David was hurt and I came back to town for… Well, let's just say, it's come in handy." He held up his arm, minus a hand. "Pun intended."

He slammed his door shut as he exited the car. She followed suit.

"C'mon. This way." He waved her over toward him.

If she hadn't been following Killian, she would have gotten lost in the dark and twisting passageway. It finally led to what seemed to like a large underground office.

"My humble abode," he announced.

Monitors and computers were everywhere. The screens filled with some of the most common places in Storybrooke. One was outside Granny's. A few showing different angles inside of Granny's and down Main Street. One showed the police station, where Graham was standing, his hands on his hips, surveying the damage left inside. A few others were dark at the moment. While the last was a split screen outside both doors to Gold's shop.

"Would you like a tour?"

Emma glanced back over to the man beside her. It seemed every time she met him at different points in her life, he was a whole new person than the last time. This Killian scared her. She began to realize that she did not know this man at all. Yet, more than anyone else, she trusted him, and that frightened her even more, but not so much in a bad way. More because it left her so indecisive about her feelings towards the man.

She stuffed her hands into the front pockets of her jeans and turned toward him. "Sure."

"Well, as you can see, this is the main office." He pressed his hand to her back and led her over to the left of the monitors. "Through here we have the kitchen and off over there," he gestured to the right of the open kitchen area, "is the laundry and bath."

His hand grasped hers and pulled her back into the office, then brought her off to the right side of the monitors. They walked several steps down a darkened hall. He pushed open a door. "This is the guest bedroom, where Smee usually crashes when he stays overnight."

He closed the door after she peeked in, crossed the hall to the opposite side. "Another bathroom," he announced with a flourish. "Complete with hot tub."

He waggled his eyebrows at her and she laughed. "Not going to happen, buddy."

He closed the door and led her a few more steps to a circular part to the hall. There were two door in front of them. He pointed to the room on the right, but did not approach it. "Storage. Mainly where we keep backups for our streams."

Then he stepped up to the other door and opened it. "And, finally, my room."

He waved her inside. She wasn't sure it was a good idea for the two of them to be alone again in a bedroom. She looked around. The room was beautiful. It reminded her of a cabin inside an old stateroom aboard a ship Neal hand once took her on for a fancy dinner. Neal had asked the owner if they could take a tour of the beautiful old ship after they finished their meal and the man was happy to comply.

Red silk sheets laid upon his bed. A large desk dominated the center of the room, strewn with papers and knickknacks. And bookshelves of various sizes lined many of the walls.

"What do you think?"

Emma turned around and looked at Killian who still leaned against the door. "It's beautiful."

"Good. It's yours until you can go home."

He stalked over to her and cupped her face. "Don't look so anxious, love. I have no intentions of sharing it with you, at the moment."

"At the moment?" She laughed nervously.

"Aye. We won't share that bed until I win your heart, Emma, and I will win it, and it won't be because of any trickery. It will be because you want me," he told her with sincerity.

"Who says you haven't won it already?" She refused to back down from his intense stare. For years they pushed this to the side. It was now time to pay the piper.


	28. Chapter 28

**A/N: **I am so sorry if this chapter seems forced. It is one of the few chapters that I really had to try and achieve the same feel as some of the others. I hope you enjoy it anyway. Thank you to all of my followers and for everyone who has favorited my story. P.S. Don't hate me by the end of the chapter. Emma has to turn into the woman she becomes.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters in this story. They belong to the great creative minds of Once Upon A Time.

**Chapter 28:**

**9 Years Ago**

Killian's head pounded, his stomach quaked and if he didn't know any better he'd say his bed was swaying. He cracked one eye open. _Bloody hell_! It was too bright to open his eyes. He scrunched them up, as his stomach rolled.

He heard a door open as he laid back cradling his aching head. _Where the hell was he_? If he was able to open his eyes without searing pain, he might be able to take in his surroundings.

"You finally awake?"

That sounded an awfully lot like his brother, Liam, but he wasn't supposed to see him until bright and early Monday morning. And it couldn't be Monday already, could it? And if it was, his brother was probably here to murder him because he was late to his post, the ship past time to set sail, by the brightness of the sun.

Killian groaned and rolled over, puling the pillow over his head. If he ignored the apparition, it was bound to go away.

Blankets were pulled from his body, before hands stole the pillow from him. "Get up, sailor, you're already late to post."

_ No_, his mind groaned.

It must have made it past his lips as well, because he heard Liam chuckle, the sound grating within Killian's skull. "Unfortunately, yes. C'mon, Killian, I've already covered for you long enough."

Killian flipped onto his back, shielding his burning eyes with his hands and looked up at his elder brother. "Just kill me and be done with it."

"That's what rum will do to you," Liam scolded. "Should have stuck to the good stuff, instead of the rot gut you were swilling."

Killian groaned, just the mention of the liquor painful to hear. "Can't afford it on my salary."

"Well, maybe, if you sold the ring instead of turning it into an earring, like a bloody pirate," Liam said as he flicked the bauble in Killian's ear, "you'd have more cash."

"It reminds me not to allow another woman too close," he murmured, as he slowly sat upright.

"Tell that to the women hanging all over you last night." Liam crossed his arms, legs braced apart, a stern expression on his face.

"Can't help it if I'm so devilishly handsome every girl wants a piece of me," Killian retorted with a grin, then a grimace as pain seared through his head. That's what he go for being too damn cocky. His hands rested on his aching scalp and rubbed.

Liam snickered. "Only because I didn't show up until later to drag your drunk all out of the bar."

Killian's eye brow rose. Liam was hardly ever cocky except when it came to his seamanship skills, so his light hearted response started Killian. He stared at his older brother intently. He rose and looked out the port hole. They were definitely at sea, no land could be seen through the small window. "You shanghaied me?"  
>"In a matter of speaking. It was for your own good. You collapsed in the middle of a kiss. Not good form, little brother."<p>

"I think I remember that. I thought I was having a dream that Emma was in my arms and then things went black." Killian's legs almost buckled under him as he stood at the port hole, for legs that should be used to the swaying of a ship, they were acting as if they and the sea had never met. He grabbed the nearby desk and held himself steady.

"Well, you were with a blonde when you collapsed, but I heard there was a brunette before that and a red head before her." Liam sat in the chair across from where Killian stood. Liam sat there looking as if he owned the place, which technically he did as they were in his cabin.

"It was Emma," Killian said more to himself than to Liam. "It had to be. It's the only thing that makes sense."

"Don't let your imagination run wild, Killian. How could it be her? What would she be doing in Annapolis? And how do you know you'd recognize her if it were? She's changed."

Killian's head whipped around from looking back out the window to his brother's visage. "It was her. You know it was. You just said she's changed," he accused him.

"I said no such thing," Liam denied and resumed reading a document on his desk.

"I heard you. My mind might be a bit fuzzy right now, but I heard you say she's changed plain and simple. And how would you know that if you didn't see her?" Killian leaned over the desk and slammed his hand atop his brother's paper. "You knew it was her and you brought me aboard ship so I couldn't find her again."

Liam looked up at him, his eyes deadly serious, his countenance one Killian hadn't seen in years, as it looked much like their father's when he was in a rage. "I did."  
>"So, you're not even going to deny it?" Killian was stunned.<p>

"Why should I?" Liam crossed his arms over his chest and leaned back in his chair.

"Damn you, Liam. You are a stubborn ass." Killian marched around the desk and slammed his way out of his brother's cabin. It didn't matter the sound killed a few more brain cells in his head. He refused to be anywhere near his superior officer at that moment, because he wasn't sure his hands wouldn't find their way around Liam's neck. Killian headed to his cabin to change into uniform and remove his earring, certain Liam had had his things brought aboard. He had work to do. And right now there was nothing he could do about contacting Emma Swan.

Bloody hell! This mission was already complicated enough with the confidentiality of what they needed to accomplish. Only the top ranking officers onboard were even aware of the actual mission. And the last thing he needed was to have his mind on other matters. It could get him or someone else killed. But, when this voyage was completed, his main focus would be on finding Emma one more time.

"C'mon, Emma. It's been three weeks. Get up off that couch and go out with me," Brittney told her as she kicked the bottom of the couch. Emma cuddled up on watching television.

Emma looked over at her dark haired friend and grimaced. "Yeah, and the last time I listened to you I had my heart broken. Again."

"Well, if it's broken, that means it still works, so no more excuses." Brittney yanked on the comforter and pulled it off Emma and flung it at the nearby chair. "You are going out with me."

Emma reluctantly stood and stretched. "Fine. Let's go."

"You are not walking out of the door looking like that," Brittney said as she grabbed Emma by the shoulders and led her toward the stairs.

"What's wrong with what I'm wearing?"

"You have worn those clothes for two days. I love you, but you smell. You are going to take a shower and put on some fresh clothes, than we're gonna meet up with a couple of girls from work at Davis' Pub on Chester." Brittney drug her up the stairs and straight into the bathroom, where she turned on the taps for Emma.

"You gonna bathe me, too?" Emma inquired with a sloppy grin on her face.

"I think you're a big girl now and you should be able to tell when you need a bath." Brittney pushed her toward the shower stall. "Now get in there."

After Emma bathed and dressed, she met Brittney back downstairs. "Do I pass inspection, oh great friend and leader?"

Brittney laughed. "Well, at least you got the title right. The clothes, not so much, but you'll do."

"What's wrong with my clothes?" Emma looked down. She was wearing a cute navy tank top with a white see-through netted sweater on top and a pair of dark jeans she just purchased a week ago.

"Couldn't you have bought some cute shoes to go with your jeans when you went shopping? Those boots are not to be worn everywhere," Brittney scolded her, while staring down at Emma's scuffed up knee-length brown boots.

"Not if I wanted to eat. Maybe next paycheck I'll let you convince me to buy some," Emma told her as both girls grabbed their purses and keys.

"Not only will I convince you, I'll go with you to make sure they find their way home." Brittney smiled at her as she locked up Matt's apartment.

Emma and Brittney jumped inside Matt's car that he allowed them to borrow while he was gone. Emma's Bug had been dropped off the night before to the shop where it needed to have the brakes inspected. They sat in silence for a few minutes as Brittney easily navigated the heavy weekend traffic. It was rare for both girls to have a Friday night off from the department store they worked at, so this was a nice change from their rotating schedule.

"So, are you going to tell me why you were so determined I go out tonight?"

Brittney glanced over at Emma and grinned. "You need to get over Killian. And the best way to do that is get another one."

"Another what?"  
>"Another guy," Brittney said brightly. "Just think about how you got over Neal."<p>

"I got over Neal the day I realized I was pregnant, alone, in jail, and all he bothered to do was send keys for the Bug," Emma lamented.

"Okay, bad example. How did you get over Killian originally?"

It was then that Emma realized for the first time since she spent time with Mary-Margaret that she had opened up to another person. It scared her and felt nice all at the same time.

"With Neal."

"Exactly! Which is how you're going to get over him again." Brittney glanced over at her excitedly.

"With Neal? Hell, no."

"No." Brittney laughed. "Not with Neal, with another guy. We'll go to the bar. If you see a guy that catches your attention go home with him, get Killian out of your system and come home. Easy as pie."

Brittney turned onto the road with the bar and searched for somewhere to park. After a few minutes she shouted Eureka as someone pulled out and she shot in the now empty place. "C'mon, Emma. You're destiny awaits."

Emma slowly got out of the car and looked up and down the street, uncomfortable at her friend's suggestion.

"But what if I hurt the guy's feelings?"

Brittney huffed as she joined Emma on the sidewalk and looped her arm through hers. "What guy doesn't just want sex? I know your only real experience was with Neal, but trust me on this, they'll be fine. Love them and leave them. It's their game, you just have to play it where you are the one leaving first."

Emma sat there most of the night thinking about what Brittney said, while her friends laughed and flirted with the men that approached them. When the night was coming t an end, Emma spotted a gut sitting alone at the bar. He had dark curly hair, a nice smile and wore his day old business suit well. When he raised his glass at her in salute, Emma pointed him out to Brittney. She gave Emma a go for it grin.

Emma stood and approached the older guy. "So…"

He just laughed. "Yeah. I'm new at this, too." He held up his left hand which was tanned except for a small pale line on his ring finger. "My wife passed away a few months ago. Just took it off tonight. Thus the drink."

"I'm sorry," Emma told him as she sat down on a stood next to him. His kind brown eyes smiled before it reached his lips.

He took a sip of his beer. "You want one?"

"No, thanks. I've reached my limit." Emma didn't have the heart to tell him she was still under twenty-one.

"Well, as this is new to both of us, I'm not sure how to proceed." He turned to her. His left arm resting on the bar between them.

Emma placed her hand on his arm and stroked it slightly, trying to negate her nerves. "How about we get out of here?"

He looked down at her hand on his arm, then back up at her. He gave her a nervous grin, which somehow helped Emma relax. "Sounds good."

He threw some money on the bar and stood up. He held out his hand to her. She looked over at Brittney who was watching from their table. Emma saw her nod her head and give her a smile. Emma looked back at the guy and slipped her hand into his.

"Let's go." She smiled at him and grabbed her purse before they left the bar.


	29. Chapter 29

**A/N: **Thank you to everyone who has enjoyed this story. I appreciate you all. And may all of you celebrating holidays this time of year, enjoy.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the characters in this story.

**Chapter 29:**

Killian stepped away from her, his hand dropped from her face, startled by Emma's words. _She loved him_? _Since when_?

Now it was she in pursuit of him as she placed her hand upon his chest and stepped forward. For every one of her measured steps, he retreated until his back was pressed up to the wall near his bed.

"No offense, love, but shouldn't I be the one advancing this relationship?" He chuckled nervously, not sure how far Emma planned to take this advantage she gained.

Her hand came up and slid lightly across his cheek and chin. She gave him a devilish smile, her jade eyes twinkling in the low light.

"Don't tell me I need to stroke your ego, Killian," she said as she kissed his Adam's apple.

His hand tangled in her long blond hair, bringing her head up so they could look at each other. "You can stroke whatever part of me you wish."

"Hmm," hummed out through her pink lips as she seemed to contemplate the thought.

His arousal hardened to painful lengths, as she licked her lips. He watched her eyes as she slowly looked at him from head to toe. In most circumstances, he'd feel like a piece of meat some lion was about to devour, but with Emma it felt like a caress that hovered just above his skin as she waited desperately for the actual touch.

Finally it came. Her hand landed on his thigh, rising higher to his waist, her body pressing its full length to his. Her eyes met his again before her other hand grasped his neck and yanked him down for a kiss so hot he thought they would spontaneously combust. He could feel her hand caressing him everywhere as they searched out his body. He shrugged out of his leather coat and wrapped her tightly in his embrace.

Moments like this he would give anything to have two hands. Emma deserved to be held and cherished by a whole man. When he felt his pants loosen he knew he had to put a stop to this. It was too soon. She just came here from a dangerous situation. He had just told her no trickery would be involved when they slept together. If he believed in anything his whole life it was good form, and this was not it.

"Emma," he breathed. "Stop, love."

He grabbed her hand which was at his zipper and pulled it up to his lips. "Not like this."

Her eyes were crazed with lust. He was certain his must be too, but he tried to calm his basic instincts.

"Not like what?" she asked, her voice deepened by desire.

"This." He dropped her hand and motioned between them. "I'm actually quite perceptive and this is a residual of your scare at the station."

He watched as she closed her eyes and breathed deeply. When she opened them, there was still fire lighting their green depths, but this time more out of anger.

"What the hell, Killian? Now you think I just wanted to screw you because I was scared?" She stormed away from him and then turned back and poked a finger into his chest. "For your information, what I wanted had nothing to do with what happened at the Sheriff's office and everything to do with the fact that ever since I've seen you in Storybrooke we have been playing a game that has led to this moment."

"I know my coming back probably startled you…"

She cut him off with a glare. "Coming back?" She let out a forced laugh. "No. I'm talking about the moment I first saw you. Hell, it's not even like you remember it, you didn't even know I existed."

"Trust me, when you ran me down, I noticed you," he told her with a grin.

"I saw you before that," Emma said as she turned away and sat on the edge of his bed.

Killian could only stare for a moment. Emma was exactly where he had pictured her for weeks now. Except in his dreams she was laid out across his sheets her blonde hair a beautiful contrast to the red silk that draped across his bed. He shook himself out of his thoughts when he realized she was staring at him. "When, love?"

"You were with Milah. You just bought the two of you ice cream. Milah barreled past me as Johanna and I were leaving Modern Fashion. She met up with you at the ice cream shop where you gave her a vanilla ice cream cone."

Emma seemed preoccupied suddenly with her hands. His hands fisted at his sides so he wouldn't run his fingers through her luscious locks. He sat next to her, his jeans still partially open. "I was unaware."

"I thought that you were the kind of guy I would have always wanted, but would never get a chance to possess. I was always drawn to the guys who were so wrong for me or unavailable. Why should you have been any different?" Her laugh was brittle and his heart cracked for her.

He turned her face to his, his finger under her chin She still refused to meet his gaze, so he placed a small kiss on her nose. It was then their eyes locked.

"Be patient," he told her. "I'm yours, but not right now. I have something I need to do."

"Go then," she said, gesturing toward the door.

"I just need to know that you're safe."

"I'm fine. Unless Gold's men come back to try to kill me," she tried to joke.

He glared at her. "That's not even a little bit funny, love."

She kissed him on the cheek. "I'm sorry."

"As am I. I will see to getting us some dinner. You rest," he told her, gesturing toward the bookcases, "or read or whatever. I'll be back soon."

His belt buckle jingled as he walked out of the room, relieved he was still a gentleman enough not to go back and lay Emma back on his bed and ravish her until they both forgot their own names.

Emma watched Killian leave, shutting the door behind him. She looked around the room once more. The whole place screamed Killian Jones, from the nautical and star maps hanging on the walls, to the folded flag in its stand on the top of the highest bookshelf, that Killian had to have received after Liam's death, to the red silk sheets to the perfectly organized closet, mostly composed of dark clothes and spit shined shoes. You could take the sailing away from the man, but not the discipline.

Emma walked over to a group of bookshelves and perused the contents. _Moby Dick_ by Herman Melville. _Secrets of the Realm _by Bev Stout. _Master and Commander _by Patrick O'Brian. _Treasure Island _by Robert Louis Stevenson_. The Old Man and the Sea _by Ernest Hemingway. _Mutiny on the Bounty _by Charles Bernard Nordhoff. Definitely a pattern here. Then one book off to the left caught her eye. A well worn copy of _Peter Pan_.

The old leather cover creaked as she opened it. There was an inscription. _To my sons, Liam and Killian. May you be young forever and learn how to fly. And may your ships be as magical as the Jolly Roger._

Emma smiled. Apparently her thinking that Killian would enjoy the picture of the Jolly Roger wouldn't be too far off. She could already imagine the large canvas being displayed over his bed.

A phone ringing disrupted her thoughts. She reached around and pulled the cell phone from her back pocket. There were no numbers displayed. Emma couldn't figure out who could be calling her than she remembered it was August's phone, her own still at the station.

She wasn't sure if she should answer it, but finally after the fourth ring, she pressed the accept button. "Hello?"

"Emma?" The person seemed confused.

"David?" Now Emma was confused, but then she remembered Killian saying earlier about David helping August.

He laughed. "Why are you answering this phone? Did August lose it at the station?"

"No." Emma shook her head even though she knew he couldn't see it. "He gave it to me. There was an incident at the Sheriff's office earlier. I'm surprised Mary-Margaret hasn't already told you." Emma sat down on the office chair and fiddled with the drawer knobs.

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine, Dad." Emma couldn't help but laugh.

"Okay, so I worry. You're Mary-Margaret's best friend. And you can quit with the dad jokes," his voice sounded stern, but at the same time Emma could hear that he was also trying to hold back a chuckle.

"But they are so much fun," she mock whined.

He finally let out a short laugh. "Joke all you want, but you need to be careful."

"I am. I'm with Killian. He said that you knew where because you helped August with it." Emma found a pen and an empty slip of paper and began to doodle.

"You're underground? What happened exactly that Killian brought you there?" If David had sounded concerned before, he sounded profoundly worried now.

"Some of Gold's men had been looking for me. August snuck me out and I met Killian, who brought me here. I'm fine, really," she tried to reassure him still wondering what his part in all of this was.

"I'm going to Mary-Margaret's. She shouldn't be there. They might go after her to get to you."

"I thought about that. I told her what happened at the station while I was driving to meet Killian. She's probably at home ready to put an arrow between anyone's eyes if they try to break in." Emma could just see her friend. She was nothing if not handy with a bow and arrow.

Now David really laughed. "She would, too. I have no doubt about it. But, I would feel much better getting her to stay with me."

"Uh-huh. Just some excuse for you to get lucky." Now her doodles consisted of hearts with David and Mary-Margaret's names.

"Emma! That is not the reason and you know it."

"David?"

"Yeah?"

"I know you don't have to tell me, but how are you involved in all this? If you know a lot, you might want to warn Mary-Margaret, because she would be devastated if anything to happened to you," she told him with resonating sincerity.

"Don't worry, Emma. There is a lot going on around here. A lot of people are involved, many you'd never suspect. We know what we are doing. And each and every one of us will assure that no one get hurt, if we can help it. A man hurt a lot of people and destroyed a lot of lives. Justice will be served and finally everyone can live in peace."

"Mr…."  
>"Don't say his name, eyes are everywhere."<p>

Emma looked over to the closed door. There was no way anyone could hear what she was saying but then maybe there was some way on David's end. "But, I thought this was a secure phone."

"It is, but that doesn't mean that everyone who might hear is trustworthy."

"Are you saying…Killian?" She asked worried.

"No, not him. However, a lot of people care for him too and we'd like to keep his involvement to a minimum or else he may be hurt again."  
>"I wouldn't want that either," she said sincerely.<p>

"I know. I need to go. I'm worried about Mary-Margaret."

"Okay, David. Thanks. Talk to you later. Tell Mary-Margaret I'm fine and safe. I know she is probably at home worrying."

"Will do. And, Emma…"

"Yes?"

"Crush the sim card in that phone after we hang up." With that he terminated the call.

Emma looked down at the phone in her hand. She flipped it over and removed the back cover. After she took the battery out she found the sim card and cracked it in half, as the door to the room opened with a soft knock.

"Dinner," Killian announced with a tray in his hand. How he managed to knock, open the door and hold that tray with his one hand had Emma in awe.

He stared down at the phone on the desk and the card in her hands. His azure gaze filled with worry. "What happened?"

"David called. He told me too, " she informed him as she held out the broken card to him.

He set the tray down on the desk and took the card from her, pocketing it in the front pocket of his jeans. "I probably should have done that earlier."

She smiled at him, trying to push aside her nagging thoughts lingering from what David had told her. "Well, it's done now. He's going to check in on Mary-Margaret."

Killian nodded and set out the plates and silverware and opened the turine with a fresh pot of clam chowder and set out a basket of breadsticks.

"What?" She teased. "No oyster crackers?"

"Whatever my lady wishes." With a flourish he pulled out a bag of oyster crackers that had been tucked inside the back of his jeans.

"You think of everything," she observed.

His eyes caught hers and a slow smile came over his face. "For you, I would do anything."


	30. Chapter 30

**A/N: **Not sure how much I will update in the next week with the holidays quickly approaching. I still have several things to do to be ready, but I will try to write and update when I can. I hope all of you enjoy whatever holidays you might have around this time of year. Thank you to all of my followers.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters in this story. They belong to Once Upon A Time.

**Chapter 30:**

**6 years ago**

Emma couldn't believe in just a few weeks she'd be starting on her final year of college, graduating with a degree in Political Science from the University of Massachusetts. It had been a long road to get here, but so far she had come through. She even received an internship to work at one of the local offices for a bounty hunter service. Sure it was just answering phones and filing papers, but it was a foot in the door.

Even the judge she had several years back had been impressed with her dedication and expunged her record so she could proceed in gaining her degree and pursuing her goal of becoming a bail bonds person. He even went so far as sending her a five thousand dollar check to help her with her college expenses. She had never been so surprised as when she received that generous check.

She was so proud of herself. It was just laughable that the whole reason she had chosen this path to begin with was the off chance she'd run into Neal. What she wouldn't pay to nail his ass to a wall, and see him hauled off to jail.

Emma made a lot of sacrifices to get to where she was. She worked long hours waiting tables at a local restaurant, then worked more hours at this bar, only to sleep for a few hours before plopping her butt into a chair for her college classes. But despite the lack of sleep, she was making it work and had barely any student loans following her, unlike many students.

She glanced down the counter of the bar and spotted a man who stared at her intently, apparently lost in thought. She hadn't seen him in a few years and gave him a grin as she approached.

"Matt," she called out to him, grabbing his attention. He looked haggard. For a man who had seemed like at the top of his game in the military, he seemed like he had hit rock bottom now. "How are you, Matt? How's Brittney? I haven't heard from her in about a year."

He slugged back his glass of whiskey and tapped the rim for a refill which she complied. After it was filled he slammed that one back too, before he swiped at his lips and gave her a wry grin. His brown hair had grown long and touched his shirt collar, one that looked like he had been living in it for a couple of days now.

"Let's see, quick version." He tapped his glass again and once Emma filled it he took a small sip. "Got trumped out of the navy after a mission gone wrong. Haven't held down a steady job since. Brittney's back in jail. She almost ended up killing her abusive boyfriend, after he attacked their baby, who I am now raising, since both their asses are not getting out of jail for at least a decade. I've almost lost him twice to Social Services because I can't keep a job or a place to live and have another hearing on Monday with no prospects of things looking any better. But, how the hell are you?"

His blood shot eyes stared up at her intently. She felt horrible. Here she had been enjoying her life and where it was going for once and then along comes something to knock her back down a peg or two. And people always wondered why she built some really protective walls around herself, barely letting anyone in.

"I'm so sorry," she told him and poured him another glass of whiskey in his now empty glass, despite the fact that she knew it was the last thing he needed. "This one is on me."

"Thanks," he mumbled before taking another long sip of the alcohol.

"Brittney told me something had happened to your naval career, but I never suspected they kicked you out." She leaned against the bar, wishing he could tell her more, but knowing he probably wouldn't. A lot of crap happened after Liam and Matt had drug Killian out of that that bar all those years ago and it all revolved around that secretive mission they left on. "Where's the baby now?"

"With a friend. I had an interview, which I was laughed out of. Ended up here after. I should go back and pick him up. You know, Liam died, right?"

Emma shook her head. She had no idea that Killian had lost his brother.

"A good man died, because our superior officers deemed a weapon of Mass Destruction was needed for a mission down the road, without preparing any of us for the consequences of attaining said weapon. I mean why should any of us be told? We were just the people to be snowballed when shit tumbles down hill." He drank the rest of the amber liquid and slammed some money on the bar. "I have to go."

He looked longingly at the empty glass. It was a look Emma had seen on people's faces before. Usually people the bar had to cut off because they have had too much to drink.

"Let me call you a cab," Emma offered.

Matt looked down at his phone and back at her. "It should be here already. Thanks a lot, Emma."

"I wish I could do more than just listen. You know, it's not much, but there is an opening for a cook at the restaurant I work at and you can check at the college, there is always some work there as well as people posting for roommates."

He looked at her thoughtfully. "I just might do that. Thanks again, Emma."

"You're welcome. I'll try to be in touch. I would like to be able to send a letter to Brittney." She picked up his glass and deposited it in the bucket under the bar, then swiped down the counter with the rag over her shoulder and collected his money.

"She'd like that," he said before he turned to go.

Emma watched him leave. She couldn't believe how life had shaken that family's foundation. She wished she could do more for them, but she struggled enough on her own. A first step would be sending a letter to Brittney. The girl helped Emma get where she was the least she could do was give her a shoulder to cry on. Then tomorrow when she went to work at the restaurant, she'd put a good word in for Matt, in case he did come in to apply.

Flying back from Japan, Killian couldn't wait to be home. Now if only he could discover where that was. The last place he had ever called home was his dorm room in Annapolis. The apartment he had after that had only been lived in for a few months and after the disastrous mission that lost him his brother, and the only job he had ever wanted, he had to give it up because he was no longer enlisted.

Before that was his apartment in Storybrooke above Modern Fashion. It had been where he and Milah had lost their virginity so many years ago. It had been where he dreamed of the great future he had planned to have. It had been where he first dreamed about Emma Swan.

She had been a lingering memory on his brain for the past several years. He had eventually learned that Buzzard knew Emma because she was living with his sister, but that road had led to no where when Killian learned Emma had left before their return.

If their mission had gone smoothly, he might have had a chance to catch her, but fate had other plans. Her roommate, Brittney, had promised to send the letter he had written should she hear from her again and it was the best Killian could hope for at the time. Since, he had never had a reply, all he could think was that Emma had severed all ties to anyone around Annapolis.

Killian felt the plane's tires touch down and he glanced out the small window at the runway. August had promised to pick him up from Boston-Logan Airport. If August hadn't helped him out he wouldn't even have the job he did. He was grateful for the continued friendship.

When the plane pulled up to the gangway, he pulled out his phone and turned it on. He noticed he had a new voicemail. It was from August, informing him he'd be unable to pick him up, but was sending a friend from Storybrooke in his stead.

Killian stood, stretched as much as he could, and straightened his spots coat and reached up for his luggage. He liked to wait until most of the passengers debarked before leaving, which is why he chose the window seat. Gathering his bag, he walked to the front and left the airplane. It felt good to stretch his legs. He had been on planes for almost a whole day, with barely time for a quick meal during one of his layovers.

He followed several of the other plane's passengers to the baggage claim. He couldn't wait to get to his hotel and crash for the next twenty-four hours. By the time he reached the carousel it was already moving, bags circling the lined up passengers. His first bag had already been off loaded and he stepped past an older gray haired lady to retrieve it. When over half of the people left, his last luggage arrived. He walked over and hauled it over his shoulder, grabbed his other luggage and went to go find whoever was his ride. He would have been just fine catching a cab, but August had insisted, more than likely wanting to debrief him on his trip.

As he walked, his eyes searched the crowd, not recognizing anyone, when suddenly a blonde man approached him. The man extended out his hand for a handshake with a grin on his amiable face.

"Killian?"

"Aye." Killian reached out and shook the man's hand. "You must be here to pick me up."

"David. David Nolan. You probably don't remember me, but we went to high school together. I was a couple of grades behind you, but everyone knew Storybrooke's star quarterback."

Killian grinned at the man. "Well, they kept insisting I was pretty good."

Both men laughed and walked out of the airport toward the short term parking garage. David led them over to an older Ford truck.

"This is mine. It doesn't look like much, but it runs," David told him as he unlocked the door for Killian and helped him put his bags in the truck.

Both men got in and began to head away from the airport onto the congested highway, that was slowed down from rush hour traffic.

"What happened in Japan, Killian?" David asked him as they merged into traffic. Apparently, David was aware of his recent activities. David might not think that Killian knew him, but he did. Mainly because Killian had kept tabs on Emma Swan after he left Storybrooke after his run in with Gold on that long ago Halloween. And since she was friends with Mary-Margaret, he knew that there was a relationship between the two of them. Killian looked over and noticed the ring on the younger man's finger.

"Maybe," Killian said with a sly grin. "Or you can get your pretty wife to torture it out of me." Killian nodded to David's hand and gave him a wink. "Which might be fun for the both of us."

David glared at him. "Do you wanna lose a hand, Hook?"

Killian's grin spread. "Ah! So protective over the beautiful Mary-Margaret."

"Mary-Margaret?" David's eyes clouded over with confusion. "I'm married to Kathryn."

"The tire dealer's daughter?" Now it was Killian's turn to be confused. "Really?"

"Yes." David nodded and pulled down the sun visor. On the back was clipped a picture of David and a blonde woman in wedding finery. "We married shortly after graduation."

"Is she aware of the endeavor you are embarking upon, mate?" If David was involved with August then he was swimming in dangerous waters. The men August worked for in the government were a no holds barred group of people.

"No. It's for the best." David turned and began to concentrate on the traffic in front of him, clearly uncomfortable by Killian's question.

Killian decided to change the subject. "If you don't mind me asking, mate, whatever did become of Mary-Margaret?"

David glanced over at him, then back at the road, his hand loosing and tightening on the wheel. "She just recently moved back to Storybrooke and teaches at the elementary school."

Killian raised his eyebrow. It seemed that David was still keeping tabs on the woman he so easily dismissed earlier. "And Milah? How's she?"

He wasn't really sure how much he wanted David to answer that question,b ut he let the question stand. It was just concern for an old girlfriend. Any guy would ask.

"Unhappy from what I can tell. I've heard rumors that she has tried to leave him, but he has found ways to make sure that she has yet to follow through." David shrugged. "A lot of people feel really bad for her. She doesn't even go out with her friends anymore."

Killian sighed. "That's unfortunate, however, the lass made her decision."

The two men fell silent for several minutes before Killian asked, "And Emma Swan?"

Once again, David shrugged his shoulders. "Haven't heard from her since high school."

"So, she hasn't returned to Storybrooke?"

David gave Killian a steady look, as if assessing him, then turned back to the road. "No. And, honestly, I'm not so sure she's one to come back. Everyone in town has lost track of her, even Johanna."

"How is she?" Killian didn't have to explain. He knew David was aware he was addressing Johanna's health.

"Getting worse. She lost the daycare. Her medical bills are piling up according to Granny and she struggles to get by. All the while Gold breaths down her neck," David gritted out.

Killian shook his head sadly. He was pretty sure if Emma knew about Johanna she would come back to help, only no one knew how to get in touch with her.

"So, mate, are you going to share the real reason that you signed up to help August take down Gold?"

David's knuckles turned white as he gripped the steering wheel tightly. "My brother."

"You have a brother?" Killian never realized, not that he knew the younger man all that well.

"A twin. I only recently found out about him. Apparently, early on when my brother and I were less than a few months old, Gold came and made my parents a deal they could hardly refuse. In doing so, they have up my brother to him. I just found out that Gold gave him to a man named George and he raised him as if he were his own, until about a year ago when James, my brother, was killed."

Killian couldn't believe it. No wait, he could. Gold was know for making deals and causing people to make painful decisions in their weakest moments. However, the fact that Gold had done such a thing when he had to be no older than a young man himself, was startling. Gold, it seemed, was evil from the beginning.

"How did you discover this, mate?"

"George came to Storybrooke. He had found out form Gold that my brother had an identical twin, me. He tried to bribe me to do a job for him that James had promised to do. I refused. Next thing I know my mother was murdered. I don't have exact proof, but I believe he poisoned her with something Gold gave him."

"Why not go after George as well as Gold?"

"I did. George is on trial in Boston. That's why I was in town. I gave my testimony this morning. Now it is time for Gold to take responsibility for his end of it. August said you were helping as well and after I agreed to get on board he told me of your exact involvement."

Killian saw the welcome to Maine sign and breathed a pent up sigh. They'd soon be in Storybrooke. He hadn't been there in years and he wasn't sure exactly how he felt about his homecoming.

"Not so much helping as securing non-governmental feeds for him to keep an eye on Gold's activities. August helped me start my company and get me out of a rough slump after my own brother died. It's the least I could do to help," Killian told the younger man as he stared out into the darkness outside the truck.

He turned and saw David nod his agreement and the two men fell back into a comfortable silence. Once they crossed the Storybrooke town line, David turned to him and grinned.

"You know, I think you might have liked my brother. From what I heard he was a liar and a thief," David teased.

"So, you think I'm a liar and a thief?" Killian pretend to be shocked.

"No, but I heard those are your favorite villains to catch," David joked.

Killian gave the man a huge grin and laughed. "Well, I know you would have liked mine. He was a stubborn ass."

David chuckled as he pulled the truck up to Granny's Bed and Breakfast.


	31. Chapter 31

**A/N: **Thank you to all my followers, both new and old. I hope all of you are enjoying this story as I am writing it. I thought for sure this was ending soon, and it probably is because I am running out of flashbacks. However, we can all enjoy it for as long as it takes. Have a wonderful holiday season.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own any of the characters, as they belong to Once Upon A Time.

**Chapter 31:**

After three days, Killian allowed her to go home. There had been no recent activity from Gold or any of his men. However, the tension between Emma and Killian was palpable. She tried to avoid him when she could and he appeared to be doing the same. Graham had given Killian some paperwork for Emma to work on while she was there. To Emma it felt like being home from school sick, busy work provided for her by a fellow student from the teacher.

Emma walked into her shared apartment with Mary-Margaret and wasn't sure what to expect. It definitely wasn't the smell of freshly baked cookies.

"Emma! You're home." Mary-Margaret rushed over and hugged her.

Emma returned the gesture and followed the cheerful woman into the kitchen, swatting at the flour reside left on her clothes from Mary-Margaret's apron. She had never seen Mary-Margaret so happy.

"What's gotten into you?" Emma asked cautiously as she sat down on one of the bar stools.

"David signed he divorce papers last night. Once they are filed it's official." Mary-Margaret sat a plate of cookies in front of Emma and poured her a glass of milk.

Emma dunked her chocolate chip cookie and took a big bite. Mumbling around it, she said, "Why do I feel like a little kid being told my parents are finally getting married?"  
>Mary-Margaret laughed. "Well, you have been calling David dad recently. Much to his chagrin."<p>

"Yeah. He asked me to stop," Emma said around another bite of cookie. "These are so good."

"I made a huge batch. I was going to donate them to the church for the Miner's Day celebration this weekend." Mary-Margaret checked the oven and pulled out another tray of cookies.

"That's nice. They'll love that. Are you still volunteering for the candle drive?" Emma swiped a piping hot cookie off the tray when Mary-Margaret turned her back.

"No. I thought we'd go shopping. Next weekend is the reunion, so I thought we'd go out and buy a new dress for it." Mary-Margaret gave her a sideways glance as if trying to see how Emma would react.

Emma groaned and leaned her head against the counter. "I don't wanna."

"Come on," Mary-Margaret encouraged. "It'll be fun. I already invited Ruby along. It'll be like in high school when we shopped for prom dresses."

"You and Ruby shopped for prom dresses. I just tagged along." Emma thought about that for a second, then laughed. "You're right, it's no different."

"C'mon, Emma. You have to go. I already made sure you have a ticket." Mary-Margaret placed another cookie sheet full of cookie dough in the oven and swiped her hands on her flour covered apron.

"But, Graham's going," Emma insisted.

"So?"

"So, someone has to watch the station while the reunion is going on." Emma grabbed another cookie and finished her milk. She got up and placed the glass in the sink to wash later.

"David is going to do it."

"What?" Emma whipped around and looked at her best friend.

Mary-Margaret nodded. "Graham has been training him. He's taking the test for the gun license next week and he already submitted the paperwork to the state."

"I swear Graham doesn't tell me anything." Emma shoved the rest of the sweet in her mouth and began to help Mary-Margaret pack up the cooled-off cookies.

"Maybe because you haven't really talked to him much since the whole climbing out the window incident." Mary-Margaret handed her the plastic wrap and Emma put it around the plates of cookies. "And also because you have a vested interest in a certain Killian Jones."

"Shh! Don't mention his name. David said we should always be careful what we say," Emma scolded her. "And Graham and I have talked. We have since Thanksgiving. Okay, we've been busy but…"

Mary-Margaret gave her an _oh, please _look, causing Emma to stop making excuses. Then Mary-Margaret told her, "David and Graham swept the place for bugs while you were gone. We should be safe." Then she began to glare at Emma. "And don't try to change the subject and avoid the issue. Graham's jealous and you know it."

Emma sighed. "I figured. I just didn't want to acknowledge it. I mean I don't even know what is going on between us, but I certainly can't talk to Graham if I don't even know what I am talking about."

"Sounds like avoidance to me."

"I am not avoiding it, I'm just dealing with stuff," Emma insisted.

Mary-Margaret gave her a doubtful look. "Well, around here it seems like you are always dealing with some sort of crisis. So, you might want to learn how to live your life around them, otherwise you might miss out on it. And trust me, love is one thing you do not want to live without. It is the one thing that lets you know you are well and truly home." She began to take off her apron right as there was a knock on the door. "That's probably David. He said he'd help me take these over to the church with me."

Emma went over and answered the door as Mary-Margaret went to the bathroom to clean up. When she opened it she was surprised to see not only David but Killian as well.

"Speaking of."

"Who? Me?" Killian asked with a smirk on his face. Damn bastard just assumed she was talking about him, which she had been.

"Come in. David, Mary-Margaret will be out in a minute, she just finished and went to get washed up." She led the guts over to the kitchen and offered them some of the cookies. David took one but Killian declined. "So, what's going on? Why are you here, Killian?"

He pulled his satchel around and pulled out some electronics. "I would like to set up a camera on each side of the door so we can see anyone who might enter or exit."

"I guess it's okay, but you'd have to ask Mary-Margaret." The buzzer dinged on the oven and Emma took out Mary-Margaret's last batch of cookies, as Mary-Margaret entered the room.

"Ask me what?" Mary-Margaret came out of the bathroom looking like she hadn't done anything more strenuous then get out of bed. Emma envied that about her friend.

"Killian wants to put a camera on each side of the door so he can see if there are any intruders."

Killian showed the equipment to the both of them. "It's pretty simple and I'll set it up where the only thing it will see is the door. No need to worry about privacy."

Mary-Margaret gave a unladylike snort. "Well, Emma looks like you'll have to refrain from answering the door naked for the pizza delivery boy."

Killian's mouth dropped open. David blushed and looked shocked between the two women. Emma was speechless and hit Mary-Margaret in the arm.

Finally, Emma sputtered, "She's joking." Then seeing that they seemed relieved, she couldn't help but tease, "I only do that for when we get Chinese delivery."

Emma burst out laughing at the reactions. David looked like he was about to have a heart attack and Killian got a gleam in his eye, before he rubbed his hand across his ear and said, "Guess it looks like we're having Chinese for lunch after Mary-Margaret and David head out."

David's hands clenched at his sides as he glared at Killian, who gave him a sideways grin. "Just joking, mate. Take it easy."

Mary-Margaret grabbed David by the arm and directed him to get a couple of trays of cookies. Then she glance over to Emma. "Don't do anything I wouldn't do."

Emma turned to Killian, desperately trying to keep a straight face. "So, tacos, then?"

"Emma!" David and Mary-Margaret screamed in unison.

"Just kidding. Go. I have to head to the station anyway." Emma turned to Killian, who was fiddling with some wires, a grin on his face. "You'll be okay here setting up cameras while I go?"

"Aye. It should only take about fifteen minutes, if you want to wait and lock the deadbolt." He started to set up the components for the cameras.

"Okay. I'll call Graham and tell him I'll be heading over in a few minutes." Emma went to grab the apartment phone, as she still had yet to get her own.

David cleared his throat and Emma turned back around. "No, taco," he told her sternly.

"I was kidding. Sheesh!"

David nodded and followed Mary-Margaret out the door, closing it behind him. Killian watched her.

"Are you going to tell me about his Mexican food and what it implies?" She wanted to swipe the knowing grin off his face.

"Nope." Emma gave him a smile and wink, then went to call Graham.

Emma couldn't help it. It was all Mary-Margaret's fault. All day, every time food was involved in the conversation she would start to giggle. First there was the incident with Graham asking if she could come into his office for a quick coffee. Then Ruby came in around lunch to drop off their orders of grilled cheese and told Emma how much she enjoyed it when the buns dripped with cheese. Next, Henry stopped by and told Graham that Regina was expecting him for dinner and that he should call her so she could get it in on time. The last straw was when August stopped in to check on her.

He came in as she was getting ready to head back to Mary-Margaret's for dinner. She had just been waiting for Graham to get back from dinner with Regina before heading out. Marco was with August because there was a maintenance issue Graham had called him about.

"Hey, Pops. Emma and I need to talk real fast. If you need her we'll be in the interrogation room," August told his father as he led Emma to the back.

"Okay, my boy. I just need to grab the ladder back there first and it is all yours."

Marco swept by them, grabbed the ladder and headed back to the front office. August sat in one of the chairs and motioned to the other one for Emma. She shook her head and sat on the table instead.

"How are you?" August asked.

"Don't okay. Seems like Gold gave up so our mutual friend said I could go home and come back to work." Emma's one leg rested on the floor as she kicked her other back and forth wondering why August was really here.

"My father is putting up some important equipment," he answered her unspoken question. "We needed to be in here so we knew it was set up correctly."

"Our friend's doing? He set something up at Mary-Margaret's earlier," she informed him.

"No. This is for me. We are down to the final leg of our investigation. In all honesty, this is to prove that Graham isn't involved. With his situation with the mayor his integrity has come into question. This is to prove he's one of the good guys." August fiddled with the carabineer that held his keys. The keys jangled with each movement.

"He wouldn't be involved with Gold. I'm sure of it." Emma was surprised that there was any doubt. Graham had even stood up to Regina when he hired her.

"I'm quite aware of his innocence, but I need documented proof. This will provide it. On top of that, if Gold should send anyone after you again it will be officially on record and used against him." August pulled out a cell phone from his pocket and looked down at the screen. "Okay, we can go back up front. Everything looks like it is working."

Emma stared at him intently as August stuffed his phone back in his jacket pocket and rose from his chair. "You didn't want me to see where the cameras and bugs were. That's why you brought me back here."

"Well, it sure wasn't to have tacos."

Emma couldn't help it. She really couldn't. She burst out laughing, doubled over trying to catch her breath laughter. August, she could see through tear filled eyes, was confused by her outburst. It was just too much. Seriously, she was going to have to have a talk with Mary-Margaret when she got home. If Emma didn't have a heart attack from laughing so hard.

Marco swept through the door. Concern was on his age-lined face. "Is everything okay?"

Emma tried to regain control but started to giggle again when August handed her a glass of water and told her to swallow. It was way too much. All the sexual innuendos, behind every mention of food. She was never going to be able to be near food or near anyone discussing food again.

"Well, if you are going to be alright, Pops and I are going to head out."

Emma nodded and waved the two men out of the room. Taking a couple of deep breaths, she wiped the tears from her face, as the door reopened. There stood Killian with a salacious grin on his face.

"Chinese delivery for Deputy Swan. Feel free to tip me however you want," he said as he sauntered over to the table.

He set down a plastic bag on the table next to her. "You know I'm vastly disappointed. I heard a rumor that you answered the door naked for Chinese food."

She eyed him warily. "Usually, I order it first so I'm prepared."

"Oh! I'm prepared, Swan." He pulled out some Chinese boxes, chopsticks, soy sauce packets, a few fortune cookies, and a strip of condoms.

"Hm. I vastly remember someone saying no trickery being involved." Emma fingered the strip of condoms and looked over at him.

He was blushing as he rubbed his ear. "How did that get in there?"  
>"Stop playing coy, Killian."<p>

"No, really. I haven't opened the bag since I picked it up. Ruby ordered it for me." He tried to grab the condoms from Emma's hand, but she snatched them behind her back.

Now it was Emma's turn to blush. "Ruby? Great. Mary-Margaret probably told her about our conversation earlier when they met for lunch."

A slow grin came on Killian's face. His eyes lighting up. "Well, love, looks like we have their permission then."

Emma held off her hand to ward off Killian's advance. It was a only a few steps but Emma truly felt stalked. His hand clasped down on her thigh as his hip nudged her knees apart. Her breath quickened as Killian stepped between her legs. His hand came up and traced her cheek and chin, then brought her face to his.

Killian's lips were soft and gentle as they ghosted over her own, but it was Emma who wanted more. Her hand rubbed his chest, her fingers curling into his chest hair, exposed by his slightly unbuttoned dress shirt. Her other fisted in his ebony locks. Her tongue swiped at his lips, causing a small growl to come from Killian.

Emma herself moaned as she felt his hand travel down her back and clasp her butt. His other arm pressed her flush against him. Food was completely forgotten from her thoughts. The only hunger she felt now was the passion raging through her.

She felt Killian's erection between them and rubbed herself against him. If she kept it up much longer she would climax just from the friction. Emma threw her head back as his mouth traveled down her neck.

Neither of them saw the door open, nor the man step inside. He stood there and watched the two of them intrigued by the fact that they were oblivious to his presence. He cleared his throat and watched the couple jump apart, as a devious smile spread across his face.


	32. Chapter 32

**A/N: **Sorry this chapter is so short, but I felt all the major components were touched on. I apologize if there are any mistakes, as I very quickly typed this up so I could post it tonight. Thank you to all of my followers, I hope everyone had a great holiday season and that everyone has a wonderful new year.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the characters within this story. They belong to Once Upon A Time.

**Chapter 32:**

**6 years ago**

It had only been four weeks since Killian left Storybrooke when he received the letter from Milah. He had spent two weeks there setting up a computer system for August to keep watch on Gold. David and August had discovered an old mine and over the last few months roughly converted it to an underground office space. August had told him that eventually he'd like to have it set up for overnight stays and such because it might be needed if they were there late into the night. Killian had been impressed but except for an occasional trip to make sure everything was operational, Killian had no intention of returning to Storybrooke.

That was until the letter arrived. It came via courier, he had to sign for it. Apparently, Milah had every intention on making sure he received it. And while she could be assured he had obtained it, she could not make him read it. The letter sat on his desk in his apartment taunting him for a full week before his curiosity got the better of him.

He carefully cut through the fine parchment of the envelope with a letter opener Only the best for the woman who had once been the love of his life. And since she deemed he couldn't provide that for her, he slowly let her and the memories of her slip away. Not to be forgotten but to be looked back on fondly.

He unfolded the letter and looked down at her precise script. Her scent wafted up from the paper and for a brief second Killian closed his eyes and remembered the feel of Milah in his arms. Her soft skin. Her pliant lips. Her long dark hair. Her jade eyes.

Killian's eyes snapped open. Milah did not own the spring green eyes he had pictured. Instead they belonged to a blonde enchantress who had quickly replaced Milah in his much battered heart. Not that it mattered what his heart thought, his head knew it was unlikely he would ever see Emma again.

Shaking his errant thoughts away, Killian sat at his desk to peruse Milah's plea for help. As the man who had once thought he'd spend the rest of his life with her, he felt compelled to jump in his newly purchased car and rescue her. But his knight in shining armor act was a little old and rusted. Being someone's hero was all well and good so long as it was appreciated., however Killian was well aware of who Milah was and he doubted that he would even receive a sincere thank you, let alone any other sort of gratitude.

He turned to his computer and plugged in some details and was somewhat easily able to access Milah's email. It barely looked used. There were no messages from friends nor her mother. It seemed David had been correct in saying she was pretty much alone except for Gold. It wouldn't be easy, but he'd have to dust off that old suit of armor. It looked like he'd be going back to Storybrooke to help an old friend, because that was all Milah could ever be to him. He just had to make sure she understood that.

Emma was running late for class. She had taken to babysitting Charlie, Brittney's son, for a couple hours every morning while Matt had a chance to get an extra hour of sleep and get ready to go to work. Matt had moved into the apartment across the hall from her two weeks ago and Emma couldn't be happier life was settling down for him and Charlie.

Today, though, everything seemed to be going wrong. First, she overslept. So, when she let herself into Matt's place to get Charlie out of his crib, he was in full out wail mode. It had taken Emma a good half hour to get him to calm down. Then, the office she was interning at called and asked her to go to city hall to obtain some warrants before coming in later. While she had been on the phone, Charlie had thrown his cereal everywhere, including on her. She was able to clean up and get Charlie washed and ready for the day, but once Matt was ready, she rushed back to her place to take a shower and wash her hair before heading to her first class of the day.

And now she was late, to the one class she needed to concentrate on the most because if she didn't she wasn't sure she'd graduate. Constitutional Equality. She was struggling with the class. It was the first class she had on Monday, Wednesday and Fridays at eight am. After being in "mommy mode" with Charlie it was so hard to switch gears when she lacked sleep working the bar the night before. Plus, her professor seemed to take great joy in calling her out whenever she zoned out. Emma swore the woman must have been a witch in her past life. Half the class, Emma would picture throwing a bucket of water at her and the other half picturing her being crushed by a house. Apparently, Emma's ex-roommate, who had been a Wizard of Oz fan, had left lingering trauma.

Somehow, Emma managed to make it to class only a minute late, thanks to her leaded foot as she drove to campus. She only received a glare from the evil professor as Emma quickly found a seat. One good thing was the second shower and the race over to the college assured that Emma was completely awake for class. That ended up a good thing when she learned of the test they were to have come Friday. She'd need to put in some serious study time over the next few days, which meant the date she was supposed to have that night with the cute guy she met at the bar last night was off.

Emma sent a quick text to the guy telling him she'd have to change plans, but if he was available she had off next Sunday and maybe they could meet then. Quickly walking back to her car, Emma exchanged books for her next class. Normally, she would have just taken them with her, but in her rush she had left them behind. As she locked up the Bug, she noticed an old BMW drive past. If she didn't know any better she could have sworn Neal Cassidy was driving it, but that couldn't be. What would the chances be for him to be in Boston let alone on campus. She shook it off and went back to campus, mentally preparing herself for her next class.

_ What the hell? Was today let's make Emma think of past loves day?_

Emma glanced back over to where one of her professor's from freshman year stood deep in conversation with a man who distinctly looked like Killian Jones. There was no way it could be and Emma was certainly not about to go over there to be sure. That didn't stop her from staring though.

Eventually, the dark haired man turned and walked toward where Emma sat beneath a tree, studying and eating her turkey and cheese sandwich. A pent up breath, that Emma didn't realize she was holding, was released. It wasn't Killian. This man did not possess eyes the color of the Caribbean Sea. Instead they were a muted brown that faded amongst the rest of his complexion.

The man glanced at her and gave her a brief smile as he passed. Emma blushed and was relieved that she hadn't run into Killian. He had sent her a letter through Brittney years back asking for her to get in touch with him. Emma had only recently acquired the letter since Matt moved in next door. When Emma had talked to Brittney a month ago, she had told her to ask Matt to go to her security deposit box and get it for her.

Every night for the last week and a half, Emma reached inside her nightstand and pulled out the letter. His flowy script put her in mind of times long past when men would write sonnets for their loves. There was not reason to read the words any longer as she had the letter memorized.

_ Emma,_

_ I must deeply apologize for my behavior when last we met. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I was withdrawn from your company. Even more, I was unable to contact you before you left Annapolis, leaving me bereft at the loss to tell you this in person. I'm currently going through a trying time where I am not sure where I will be when this missive reaches you, but I will be sure to keep my cell number up to date if you would but call me. Please, I would love to speak to you again._

_ Yours truly,_

_ Killian_

It had included his cell number which Emma also committed to memory both in her brain and on her phone. She just couldn't convince herself to press the button labeled Killian.

Frustrated, Emma finished off her sandwich and shoved her books back in her bag. She needed to go for a drive. As she stood, she brushed herself off and glanced at her watch. Twenty minutes until her last class of the day. She'd just have to miss it. She needed to get out of here and think. If she left now, she'd have enough time to sort out her thoughts before she had to pick up the paperwork at city hall and report for her job as an intern, before heading off to work at the restaurant. Thank God at least Monday nights she didn't have to also work at the bar. She had a feeling after the day she had she would be crashing in bed early tonight.


	33. Chapter 33

**A/N: **As a new year dawns, we are coming to the end of this story. I hope everyone has enjoyed it. There should be about three chapters after this one, maybe four depending on how it works out. Thank you to all the people who have followed this story. I hope each and every reader has a wonderful 2015.

**Disclaimer: **I do not own the characters in this story. They belong to Once Upon A Time.

**Chapter 33:**

Killian reacted first, pushing Emma behind him as he turned to whoever entered the room. His eyes widened in shock as he saw Mr. Gold standing there, his cane in hand with a smile that would do a shark proud.

"What do you need, Gold?" he questioned through gritted teeth.

"Oh, so we will be acknowledging your presence this time." Gold gestured to Emma. "Miss Swan seemed to have a hard time with that the last time we spoke."

Emma began to step toward the smarmy man, but Killian held out his left arm and held her back. This was his battle and she didn't need to be involved in it. "Leave her out of this."

"I would have been more than happy to do so, but you don't seem to be able to stay away from her." Mr. Gold gave Emma an assessing look, making Killian's own skin crawl. "As far as weaknesses go, you picked a pretty one, but then you've been know to attract things of beauty."

Killian growled. He felt Emma's hands at his shoulders, this time it was her urging restraint.

Gold used his walking stick to poke Killian in the chest. "Careful, Mr. Jones. We wouldn't wish anything untoward to happen inside the Sheriff's station. You really should listen to your girlfriend." Gold held his hand up to his chest as if in sincerity. "I'm just here to check in on the deputy's welfare. Apparently, some unsavory people broke in here a few days ago using my name as a point of reference. Unfortunately, I had to see to it that the riff raff was exposed for the fraudulent characters that they were."

"What did you do?" Killian accused him, his eyes narrowing.

"Unlike some people within this room, I must rely on the law to apprehend criminals," Gold replied with a scowl on his face.

"Why don't I believe you?" Emma asked from behind Killian.

"Believe however you wish, dearie. Just know that I have already warned Mr. Jones about obtaining things that were not his to possess. I've heard thievery in many countries is punishable by having one's hand removed." Gold waved his arm dramatically at Killian's missing hand. "Perhaps, Mr. Jones should count himself lucky he has only lost one."

Killian almost lunged for the man, but Graham appeared. He stepped between them, turning his back on Killian so he could address Mr. Gold directly. "I believe you were here to see me. If you would follow me to my office."

Killian watched as Graham directed Gold out of the room, with a sympathetic glance thrown back toward the two of them. It was only then that Killian realized that his nails dug into his palm. He grabbed the nearest item, a carton of Chinese food, and threw it across the room, taking some satisfaction in seeing the noodles and sauce sliding down the mirrored part of the wall.

"You're bleeding." Emma grasped his hand and turned it over to examine it.

He removed his palm from her hands and reached for his flask in the back pocket of his jeans and handed it to her. She glanced at it, took it and uncorked it before she poured some on a napkin before dabbing it on his bloodied hand. He watched as she walked over to one of the shelves and returned with a roll of gauze. Emma unrolled it and gently wrapped his hand. Before she tied it off she placed a small kiss to the center of his palm, her eyes locked onto his.

"Ogres can smell blood," she told him.

"I thought it was giants," he teased.

She gave give a small smile that turned quickly into a frown as she stared at his battered palm. "Either way, you wouldn't want Gold to come back, would you?"

Killian couldn't help but laugh, relieving some more tension from inside him. "Thank you."

"For what?" She glanced up at him quizzically.

He reached for her waist and pulled her toward him. "For being here. For holding me back. For reminding me that Gold can't win."

"I did all that?" Her head tilted up to his, her silky hair slipping behind her shoulder.

His head drifted on it own accord down to hers. "Aye."

Killian devoured her lips. In spite of the fact that Gold was not far away, he couldn't help but hope that things were different. That is his revenge wouldn't be the one thing that could stand in their way, because Killian knew in his heart that he would do just about anything to bring the man to justice, even if he had to enact it on his own.

"C'mon, Emma. Let's see the dress," Mary-Margaret called out.

Emma looked at the woman in the mirror unable to associate her with the Emma Swan she saw every day. The black leather dress fit in all the right places and even though the cut was demure, not even showing a hint of cleavage, with the neckline hitting her collarbone, it was something she wouldn't normally choose. "I'm not sure."

"Just show it to us, Emma. It can't be that bad," Ruby chided from outside the dressing room.

Reluctantly, Emma pushed open the door and stepped out as the bell in front of Modern Fashion rang signaling a new customer.

"Swan," a breathy voice called out from the front of the store. "You are a vision."

Emma glanced over and saw Killian approaching. The teal button down shirt under his customary leather jacket and vest accented his eyes to perfection. They appeared bluer than she had ever seen them. Her eyes fell lower and appreciated the dark denim that hugged him all the right places. Her mouth grew dry just looking at him.

Swallowing hard, she strangled out, "What are you doing here?"

"Graham sent me to ask you to come by the office when you get a chance. He tried to call but only received your voicemail." He approached her and pushed back a section of her hair behind her shoulder. "You have an annoying habit of not answering your phone, love."

"Good. Maybe she'll listen to you," Mary-Margaret chimed in. "I've tried a hundred times to tell her about that."

Killian started. It seemed he had been unaware of Mary-Margaret's presence until that moment.

"We're shopping for clothes for the reunion," Emma told him.

"Ah! Well, I'll let you ladies get back to it then." He smiled at her before placing a gentle kiss on her cheek. Then he leaned in a whispered in her ear. "Like the dress, love. Maybe next time Ruby orders us some Chinese we can take advantage of it's use."

He wagged his eyebrows before he turned to leave, Emma giggling nervously in his wake. Ruby gave her a look that said she had a vague idea of what Killian had told her. And who knew, Ruby seemed to hear everything so she might have actually heard. Emma blushed at the thought.

"I'm going to try on the other dress," Emma announced as she scurried into the dressing room. Once the door was closed she clasped against it and closed her eyes. Killian was really getting to her. She fingered the swan necklace behind the leather dress. It was always there as a reminder that no one ever stayed. Yet, that line was becoming more and more blurred as Killian was slowly getting inside the walls she very carefully erected around herself.

Standing straight, Emma unzipped the dress. Even if she didn't plan to purchase the dress for the reunion, she knew she had every intention of that dress coming home with her. She removed it and placed it back upon its padded hanger. Her hand caressing the leather as she hung it up. Her nose caught a whiff of the smell emanating from the dress and her eyes closed once more. Between the sensory feel and smell of the leather, Emma could almost feel Killian's presence with her. She squeezed her thighs closed as she let images of them in the Sheriff's station invade her thoughts.

"Emma? You coming out?" Mary-Margaret called.

Emma's eyes shot open. She pushed the lustful images aside and reached for the other dress. It was maroon silk. As she slipped it over her head the fabric caressed her skin and Emma could almost feel Killian's hand upon her flesh. She really needed to get over this. She spun around and looked at herself in the mirror. It was beautiful. The neckline dipped low and accented her chest while the color made her skin look as if it was made of milk and cream. She buckled the black belt that came with the dress and it cinched in her waist, much like a corset would. If Killian had seen this dress…

"C'mon, Emma," Ruby called, knocking on the door. "Let's see."

Emma unlocked the door and stepped out. A wolf whistle erupted from Ruby.

"Wow," Mary-Margaret exclaimed.

"What she said."

Emma glanced over to see David standing by Mary-Margaret's side. "What are you doing here?"

"Came to pick up the three of you for lunch. Figured with all the retail therapy you might have forgotten to eat." He gave her a smile, then he wrapped his arm around Mary-Margaret and kissed the top of her midnight black hair.

Emma's stomach growled at the thought of food. In their haste to meet Ruby, Emma had left her pop tart in the toaster. "I could go for some food, sure."

"Hey," Ruby jumped in. "You wanna try the new sub shop across town? No offense, but I have off today, the last thing I want to do is go to Granny's."

Everyone seemed to nod in agreement. "Great," Emma said. "I'll go get changed and be out in a minute."

She heard David tell them, "You're telling her to by that dress, right?"

Emma smiled as she closed the door and prepared to change. If David liked the dress, Killian was sure to, but then it would be Graham, not Killian, who would be there to appreciate it. Maybe she should just stick to the black leather one that Killian already saw. Shaking her heard, as she slipped her sweater over her head, she wondered why she cared what Killian thought of a dress that she would be wearing to an event she hadn't even purchased a ticket to attend. Thinking of that, Emma wondered how exactly Mary-Margaret had obtained a ticket for her. By the time Emma had been convinced to go, ticket sales were already over.

She grabbed both dresses and walked to the cashier. Despite the large sum, she purchased both. When Mary-Margaret walked over and smiled in appreciation at her decision, Emma looked over at her friend and addressed the issue that laid upon her mind.

"How exactly did you get me a ticket to the reunion?"

Mary-Margaret glanced at her, her forehead creased, as if debating what to say. "I…uh."

"You what?" Emma questioned as she handed over her credit card to the clerk.

"You're my date."

Emma stared at her for a good minute in shock, as the clerk tried to get her attention, handing back her card. Finally, Emma grabbed her card, slipped it back into the back pocket of her jeans and signed the receipt. Only after she grabbed the dress bag, did she turn back to her friend who had a sheepish look on her face.

"You're not taking David?"

"I planned to, but then you said you wished to go and the sale of tickets had been over." Mary-Margaret waved over to where David stood deep in conversation with Ruby. "We talked and we agreed that I should take you. We can always go together to his reunion next year."

"Are you sure?"

"Hey, it will be like junior prom. The two of us against the school." Mary-Margaret linked her arm through Emma's.

"Well, back then we had Milah and her gang to face," Emma said as the two women approached David and Ruby.

Ruby looked up. "Just because the leader is no longer here doesn't mean the minions are any less evil."

"True," Mary-Margaret agreed.

Emma looked over at David. "Are you sure you're okay with this?"

He gave her a smile that would have had most women sighing. "It was my idea." He reached over and grasped her chin and leaned down to kiss her forehead. "Just promise me to have fun in my place."

Emma glanced up at him with her own devastating grin. "Sure, Dad. I'll make sure Mom has a good time, as well."

David gave her a mock glare before he stuck his tongue at her and they all laughed. Looping all their arms together, they left Modern Fashion and walked down the street.

As they approached the sheriff's office, Emma stopped. "Guys, do you mind if I stop in and find out what Graham wants?"

"Sure, Emma." Mary-Margaret told her. "Why don't you just meet us there?"  
>"That's perfect. Thanks." Emma hugged Mary-Margaret. "Oh! Can you order me…"<p>

"Turkey and Swiss, mayo only, with lettuce and tomatoes," Ruby cut her off with a smile.

Emma grinned back. "Having a friend who is a waitress does come in handy sometimes."  
>"Go," David urged. "We'll see you soon. It's freezing out here and we need to hurry if we are going to get a table before the lunch crowd comes in."<p>

Emma waved and headed inside, with a brief glance back to see her friends heading off toward the sub shop.

"Finally," Graham said as she entered the main part of the station. "I've been trying to reach you for two hours now."

"It's my day off," she informed him. "It's not like I was expecting a call.'  
>"Doesn't matter. You're here now." Graham handed her a manila file folder. "Read it."<p>

"What is it?"

"If you read it, you'll find out," Graham told her, his voice laced with exhaustion.

Emma gave Graham and assessing glance. He was in his usual garb, vest, boots, white button-down, complete with tie, but it wasn't his clothes that caught her eye, it was his face. Lines creased around his eyes. His lips were pursed as if he was too tense to smile. His jaw had a nervous tick. Apparently, whatever was in the file he handed to her had him in an agitated state.

She sat down at her desk and flipped it open. Graham sat on the edge of the desk and watched her. Inside there were some pictures and an official document. Pulling the paper out, Emma scanned it, her heard stopping cold. It was a warrant for Killian's arrest for the murder of Milah Gold.

Frustrated, she tossed it back on her desk and picked up the photos. There was one of Killian at the Sheriff's station. One had Killian outside her apartment with David, from the other day when he installed the cameras. Another had him standing at the docks staring out to sea. The last few were crime scene photos taken after Milah's death. Her stomach turned over at the massive amount of blood near the body. Blood that had to have come from Killian when Gold cleaved off his hand.

Graham finally spoke and drew Emma's eyes off the gruesome scene. "It's now official. We have to arrest Killian or we will be brought in for questioning for not doing our jobs. The DA delivered it personally, with a warning. It seems, Gold has him in his pocket with as quickly as this paper arrived."

Emma sighed and closed her eyes, a headache coming on. "When did it come in?"

"Ironically, right after Killian called and I asked him to tell you to stop in or call."

Emma opened her eyes and looked up at Graham questioningly. "So, what did you need before?"  
>"I wanted to ask you if you could cover for me for an hour tonight." Graham waved as if it was no longer much importance. "I had promised August I'd help Marco with something, forgetting that you had the day off."<br>"I'll do it," she quickly told him, as she rested her folded arms on her desk. "But, first, we need to tell Killian about this."

"No."

Emma eyes narrowed. "Why not?"

Graham just shook his head. "Not we. You. My hands are tied. You have to tell him and impress on him that we can't be near him again or else we will have to bring him in."

She nodded. "Guess this means lunch is off. I'll send Mary-Margaret a text." She rose and took her phone out of her coat pocket.

"Tell Killian in person. No texts, no calls, nothing that can be traced. He should be at the safe house. He moved back there yesterday." Graham stood and closed the file, picked it up and walked back to his office.

"Graham."

He turned back to her, his hand clenching around the file.

"It'll be okay. I know he's your friend. We'll find a way together to get Gold and save Killian." Emma gave him a tentative smile and walked out of the office, her mind firmly centered on trying to get to Killian's hideout without being seen.


End file.
